Bloomberg reports that the BHP Group has talked to Anglo American CEO Mark Cutifani about running for the top job at the diversified miner, according to sources familiar with the matter.  

BHP apparently made the approaches earlier this year and again more recently.  Cutifani has rebuffed the company’s advances so far.  While BHP favors an internal hire, it also wants to speak with external candidates, the sources said.  Cutifani has said in previous interviews he planned to stay until Anglo finished its Peruvian copper project Quellaveco, which may start production in 2022, by which time he will be in his mid-60s.  There has been speculation for years about who might take the reins of BHP, the world’s biggest mining company, once Andrew Mackenzie steps down, possibly in 2020 when he will have been in the post for seven years.  Melbourne-based BHP is the biggest company in Australia, but it hasn’t had an Australian-born boss since merging with Billiton in 2001.  Cutifani, who hails from Australia and has a background in mining engineering, has overseen one of the industry’s most successful turnaround stories in the past five years at Anglo.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Mining Weekly

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