Jean-Sébastien Jacques was appointed Rio Tinto deputy chief executive in March 2016 and succeeded Sam Walsh as Rio Tinto chief executive on 2 July 2016. Mr Jacques joined Rio Tinto in October 2011 as the president, International Operations Copper group, where he led a senior team and effectively managed interests in the Palabora Mining Company in South Africa, Northparkes Mines in Australia, Kennecott Eagle Minerals in Michigan, Pebble Mine in Alaska and Sulawesi in Indonesia.
Mr Jacques will be stepping down from his role as an executive director and chief executive of Rio Tinto following a board review and shareholder pressure over the company's destruction of the Juukan Gorge rock shelter, a sacred site dating back 46,000 years. He will relinquish the roles in January 2021 and leave the group at the end of March 2021.
