Northern Star Names Glencore's Suresh Vadnagra Next CEO

Northern Star Resources said it will appoint Glencore executive Suresh Vadnagra as its next chief executive and managing director in October, handing Australia’s biggest listed gold miner a new leader as activist investor Elliott Investment Management keeps pushing for wider change.

The company said Vadnagra will replace Stuart Tonkin, who first signaled in May that he intended to step down. Northern Star also said chief financial officer Ryan Gurner will serve as interim chief executive until Vadnagra starts.

Leadership handover

Northern Star said the board selected Vadnagra after a comprehensive search that looked at internal and external candidates from mining and adjacent sectors. One report said the package includes a A$2.2 million base salary, a A$1.6 million sign-on payment and up to A$8 million in shares and conditional cash rights.

Vadnagra is currently head of Glencore’s nickel and zinc industrial assets. He previously worked at Newcrest Mining, where he had roles on major projects and technical teams.

The timing of his appointment lines up with the company’s wider management reset. Northern Star has said Vadnagra is due to take over in October, while one report placed Tonkin’s exit on October 5 and said Gurner would cover the gap until then.

Board changes and activist pressure

The CEO change is part of a broader leadership overhaul at the gold miner. Northern Star said deputy chair Michael Ashforth will succeed Michael Chaney as chair later this year, with one report saying the handover is expected at the November annual general meeting.

The reshuffle comes after Elliott built a stake worth more than A$1 billion and called for strategic, operational and board changes. Elliott has pushed Northern Star to bring in an external CEO, refresh the board and review strategy.

That campaign has added pressure on a company that has faced operational setbacks and repeated guidance downgrades despite a strong gold price backdrop. Northern Star said it delivered quarterly gold sales of 433,000 ounces and annual sales of more than 1.5 million ounces, in line with revised guidance.

One report said the latest moves did not fully satisfy Elliott, which still wants deeper strategic action. That leaves investors watching for whether the new leadership team will go beyond personnel changes.

What investors will watch next

Tonkin’s planned departure, Chaney’s exit as chair and Ashforth’s succession all point to a significant reset at the top of the company. The next questions are whether Northern Star changes capital allocation, alters its asset strategy or launches a broader strategic review under the new leadership.

The company’s board said the CEO search considered a wide set of candidates, signaling that it opted for an external appointment rather than an internal promotion. For investors, Vadnagra’s arrival will now be judged against the same operational and strategic pressures that brought Elliott into the story in the first place.