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Brendan Bell will continue to act as CEO through June while the diamond mining company finds a successor.
Brendan Bell
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories--Canadian diamond mining company Dominion Diamond Corp. announced this week that CEO Brendan Bell will leave the company this year.
Bell will vacate his role as CEO and member of the board of directors on June 30, giving the company time to find a successor.
In a company statement, Bell said he was leaving because he does not want to make the move to Calgary.
Dominion announced in November that it was moving its headquarters from Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories to Calgary in order to save about $14.5 million a year.
The company is the world’s third largest producer of rough diamonds by value, operating the Ekati Diamond Mine and owning a 40 percent stake in the Diavik Diamond Mine, both of which are located in Canada’s Northwest Territories.
“The decision to move the corporate offices of Dominion from Yellowknife to Calgary was necessary in order to reduce operating costs and support the long-term strength of the company, and is one that I continue to support,” Bell said. “For personal reasons, however, this is not the right move for my family. It has been a pleasure working with the company's senior management team, and I will continue to do so until a successor has been identified.”
Bell joined Dominion in 2013, becoming the acting CEO in 2014 and official CEO in 2015. Previously, he served in the Northwest Territories’ Legislative Assembly in various roles including minister responsible for energy and mines and minister responsible for the environment, and minister of justice and attorney general in the government of the Northwest Territories.
Jim Gowans, chairman of Dominion’s board of directors, said: “On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Brendan for his contributions to Dominion, in particular for the role he played in guiding the company as chief executive officer over the last several years. We wish him all the best in the future.”
Dominion is working with recruiting company Korn Ferry to find candidates for the CEO role.
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