By JOHN SAKALA
Vedanta Resources Limited has appointed Christopher Sheppard as the new Konkola Copper Mines Plc (KCM) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to be based at KCM Head Office in Chingola.
Vedanta Group CEO Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan said the appointment was effective March 18, 2019.
Mr Venkatakrishnan said Mr Sheppard will drive all of KCM’s strategic business priorities across safety, environment, community, sustainability, people practices, ethics, governance, innovation, costs, capital expenditure, growth, EBITDA and free cash flow.
He said Venkatesan Giridhar, who had been acting KCM CEO will continue in his role as Chief Financial Officer assisting Mr Sheppard and the entire leadership team.
“Chris will provide leadership in delivering KCM’s vision of over 50 years of sustainable mining and operations in Zambia,” he said.
Mr Sheppard holds a Bachelors’ Degree in Mining, which he obtained from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa and has attended, among others an Advanced Management programme at Harvard School of Business.
He brings with him 35 years of contracting and mining experience.
He has held leadership roles with Anglo American, Anglo Platinum, Lonmin Platinum, and Murray and Roberts Cementation.
Prior to joining Vedanta he was the Chief Operating Officer at AngloGold Ashanti Limited in South Africa.
Christopher is married to Beverley, who will shortly be joining him permanently in Chingola, and they have been blessed with three married children, Samantha, Clive and Matthew, as well as three grandchildren. He is a fitness enthusiast and enjoys sports.
This is according to a media statement made available by KCM Corporate Affairs General Manager Eugene Chungu.