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JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Aim-listed resources and development company African Consolidated Resources (AFCR) has appointed “resource entrepreneur” Roy Pitchford acting CEO with immediate effect.
Pitchford, the former CEO of mineral firms African Minerals, Cluff Resources Zimbabwe (Cluff), Delta Gold Zimbabwe, African Platinum and Zimbabwe Platinum Mines (Zimplats), would be employed with immediate effect and for an initial term ending October 31, following which a long-term appointment was expected to be concluded.
The Zimbabwe national was also a past president of The Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe.
AFCR executive chairperson Roy Tucker said Pitchford’s vast experience would assist the company to rapidly advance its flagship asset, the Pickstone-Peerless gold project, in Zimbabwe, which currently boasted a Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant resource of 3.56-million ounces of gold.
“He is almost uniquely qualified for this position with AFCR. His record in Zimbabwe includes both Cluff, where he led the development of Freda Rebecca, the largest gold mine in the country, as well as a number of smaller mines.
“At Zimplats he oversaw the development of the Ngezi opencast platinum mine into production, the recommissioning of the Selous metallurgical complex in 2001 and created a company with a platinum group metals resource base in excess of 300-million ounces,” Tucker said in a statement on Monday.
He added that the company would now look to unlock the “considerable” potential of the company's portfolio and move into the next phase of its evolution – targeting commercial gold production in the near term.