CHRISTINE Ramon, CFO of AngloGold Ashanti, is to take early retirement, the gold producer said in an announcement today.
As interim CEO, Ramon anchored AngloGold Ashanti during perhaps its most tumultous period. In addition to the Covid pandemic with which all society contended, Ramon saw off a merger attempt by Sibanye-Stillwater, and managed the company during the morale-weakening dysfunction at its board level that had sexual harrassment charges against its then chairman Sipho Pityana at its root.
She was also interim CEO in the aftermath of a pillar failure which killed an employee and brought the re-engineered Obuasi mine in Ghana to a grinding halt in May 2020.
Ramon said in a statement that following the tragic loss of her husband to Covid last year, she had decided to spend more time with her two children. “I am thankful and proud of my work and achievements at AngloGold Ashanti, and of the exceptional team I’ve worked alongside during that time,” she said.
Ramon’s early retirement begins in June and ends seven years at the company. She was previously CFO of Sasol, the petrochemical company. Ramon also served as a director of the World Gold Council and the International Council on Mining and Metals.
She took up the role of interim CEO following the surprise resignation of Kelvin Dushnisky in June 2020 until the appointment of full time CEO, Alberto Calderon just over a year later. “We bid farewell to Christine with a deep sense of gratitude for her immense contribution to our company,” said Calderon.
Said AngloGold Ashanti chairwoman Maria Ramos: “Christine has had a long and successful tenure as CFO and leaves behind a strong balance sheet and a hard-earned tradition of disciplined capital allocation.
“She also led this company as interim CEO through a challenging operating environment and during an exceptionally difficult time for her personally, showing courage, commitment and resilience that will remain a lasting legacy of her tenure.”
AngloGold Ashanti said a process to identify Ramon’s replacement “… will commence, with a view to enabling a smooth transition to her successor”.
