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(Bloomberg) — Philippe Mellier will step down as chief executive officer of De Beers, the world’s biggest diamond producer, with Bruce Cleaver taking over the position on July 1.
Cleaver was group director of strategy and business development at Anglo American Plc, De Beers’ parent company, from 2015, London-based Anglo said in a statement Friday. Before that, he served as the gem producer’s executive director for strategy and commercial relationships until 2015, and as co-acting CEO for a year before Mellier was appointed in 2011.
Mellier, 60, was appointed in May 2011 from Alstom SA, with De Beers breaking a tradition of promoting from within. Last year, the diamond company weathered slowing Chinese demand and an industry credit crunch forced the company to lower prices about 15 percent in 2015. De Beers and rival Alrosa PJSC responded by cutting off supply to try to support the market.
Bruce Cleaver discusses his appointment as our new CEO with @jreganmears https://t.co/a2slYMVvmz
— De Beers Group (@debeersgroup) May 27, 2016
This month, De Beers completed a fourth offering of rough diamonds this year, signaling a stronger-than-expected demand during what is usually a weaker quarter.
“The structural dynamics of the diamond market continue to improve, led by the strength of consumer demand for diamond jewelry,” Anglo CEO Mark Cutifani said in the statement.
