SAO PAULO – Brazilian miner Vale has proposed enlarging its board by adding one independent member, according to a securities filing, two months after 300 people died in a mining dam operated by the company.
One source close to controlling shareholders said the change is aimed at including more executives with previous experience in mining and sustainability issues.
According to the filing on Thursday night, three board members will be independent and nine will be appointed by controlling shareholders. Currently, the board has 11 members and one employee representative who is elected separately from the rest of the board.
The proposal, which shareholders will vote on at an April 30 meeting, increases the total number of board members from 12 to 13 for the 2019 to 2020 period.
The board members appointed by the controlling shareholders are Jose Mauricio Coelho, CEO of pension fund Previ; Hamilton Ferreira; Marcel Barros; Marcelo Labuto; Fernando Buso; Eduardo Rodrigues Filho; Oscar Camargo; Toshiya Asahio and Jose Luciano Penido. Eduardo Rodrigues is a former Rio Tinto executive and Jose Penido was CEO of Samarco Mineracao from 1992 to 2003.