TODAY In Markets ›

Bateman exodus continues

Allan Seccombe | Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:02

[miningmx.com] -- Hard on the heels of the resignation of Bateman CEO Eddie du Rand and the head of engineering projects Pieter du Plessis, the chief financial officer Philippe Monier is the latest to say he is leaving the company.

"He resigned on Monday and he's on a three-month notice period to ensure there is an orderly hand over of his responsibilities," Bateman spokeswoman Cheryl Langbridge said.

It's not clear at this stage why he is leaving or where he is going.

Monier joined Bateman in 2008. He was at one stage the chief financial officer of BHP Billiton Base Metals.

Martin Smith, the MD of the Sub-Saharan region, also handed in his notice on Monday, Langbridge said.

A rumour is that he was approached by AIM-traded MDM Engineering, a South Africa-based minerals process engineering and project management company, to be the new CEO.

Grant Lowman's resignation as MDM CEO was announced by the company in November 2009. Lowman has agreed to stay on until a new CEO was found and then to be available as a consultant to ease the handover.

Lowman told Miningmx an announcement was coming out on Monday (22 February) from MDM and he could not offer any comment.

Executive chairman John Ferreira has taken over the running of Bateman, which offers engineering solutions to the mining and minerals sector globally.

Bateman has flattened its management structures, meaning some positions had become redundant. Du Rand leaves Bateman at the end of March and du Plessis at the end of June. Neither of them will be replaced.

During 2008, Bateman took tremendous strain from three difficult projects, which was felt on the bottom line. It led to a change in business strategy, shifting it away from lump sum turn key (LSTK) projects in favour of contracts that would result in a greater degree of shared risk with clients.

Bateman's largest shareholder, Global Minerals, successfully delisted the company from London's Alternative Investment Market during 2009 after a precipitous drop in its market capitalisation.