Nornickel is making changes to its company management model to increase operational efficiency amid external challenges.
The company says the changes are driven by such issues as falling metal prices, limited market access, rising costs and reduced availability of equipment and technologies, difficulties with international payments, staff shortages, and more.
The two key operational units — the Norilsk and Kola divisions — are being merged into the Polar Division. This will create a flatter management structure where decisions can be made more quickly. Alexander Popov will lead the new division as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Alexander Leonov will become his deputy in the merged division and continue to manage Kola MMC.
In addition to the Polar Division, three other divisions remain in Nornickel’s structure. Mikhail Salkov will head the Trans-Baikal Division. Evgeny Fedorov will remain the head of the Energy Division. Anton Berlin will continue to lead the Sales Division.
Nikolai Utkin, who previously held the position of Senior Vice President and Head of the Norilsk Division, will become First Vice President and Head of Government Relations.
Meanwhile, Sergey Malyshev has been appointed First Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Stanislav Seleznev, Vice President for Environment Protection and Industrial Safety, has become the curator of the company’s sustainable development function.
“The challenges that Nornickel is facing today are unprecedented. We can overcome them only by using radical methods. We need to accelerate all internal processes as much as possible, remove organizational barriers, and ensure a significant increase in production efficiency and financial stability,” said president of Nornickel Vladimir Potanin.
Theodor Lisovoy, Managing Editor, Rough&Polished
