Aim-listed gold producer Goldplat, which owns gold recovery operations in South Africa and Ghana, reports that its COO Hansie Van Vreden has resigned to take up the position of CEO of a specialist mining services company.

Goldplat and Van Vreden have agreed that he will remain at the company until May 31 to provide an orderly transfer of his responsibilities within the group.

However, taking into account the existing management structure in Goldplat’s gold recovery operations, and the planned disposal of the group’s Kilimapesa mining operation, Goldplat does not currently plan to recruit a replacement COO.

Further, a process is currently under way to further strengthen the finance function through the appointment of a non-main board group FD enabling the CEO, who currently has overall responsibility for Goldplat’s finance function, greater focus on operational activities.

Goldplat nonexecutive chairperson Matthew Robinson says Van Vreden has been with Goldplat since 2013 and his contributions to the group’s development over those years have been “immense”.

“We have all enjoyed working with Hansie and wish him great success in his new venture.”