The Telegraph
Rio Tinto chief Tom Albanese waives bonus after profits drop on aluminium hit
Edited by : AL CIRCLE
1 min read
The chief executive of mining giant Rio Tinto said he will not take an annual bonus after the company posted an $8.9bn (£5.6bn) writedown on the value of aluminium assets bought under his oversight.
Tom Albanese said he declined to be considered for the reward because of what has happened to the FTSE 100 miner's Alcan arm, purchased in 2007 for $38bn shortly before the markets crashed.
"It's very simple," he said. "It [the Alcan deal] was on my watch. I just didn't want to be considered for a bonus."
Rio's finance director Guy Elliott also asked to not be considered for a bonus for 2011. Mr Albanese received a £1.6m bonus in 2010, half of which was cash and half shares vesting at a later date.
The move makes him the second chief executive in recent weeks to forgo a bonus, after a public outcry forced Royal Bank of Scotland boss Stephen Hester to drop his claim to a £1m payment.
"The group has finally admitted defeat on Alcan amid low prices and soaring input costs," said Charles Cooper, an analyst at Oriel Securities.
Tom Albanese said he declined to be considered for the reward because of what has happened to the FTSE 100 miner's Alcan arm, purchased in 2007 for $38bn shortly before the markets crashed.
"It's very simple," he said. "It [the Alcan deal] was on my watch. I just didn't want to be considered for a bonus."
Rio's finance director Guy Elliott also asked to not be considered for a bonus for 2011. Mr Albanese received a £1.6m bonus in 2010, half of which was cash and half shares vesting at a later date.
The move makes him the second chief executive in recent weeks to forgo a bonus, after a public outcry forced Royal Bank of Scotland boss Stephen Hester to drop his claim to a £1m payment.
"The group has finally admitted defeat on Alcan amid low prices and soaring input costs," said Charles Cooper, an analyst at Oriel Securities.
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