Christopher J. Robison
About Christopher J. Robison
Independent director since December 4, 2020; age 67; serves as Lead Independent Director and chairs both the Compensation Committee and Technical Committee, also a member of the Corporate Governance & Nominating Committee. Former COO and EVP at Newmont, with 40+ years in mining across six commodities and five continents; B.Sc. in metallurgical engineering (University of Nevada, Mackay School of Mines), plus business leadership programs at London School of Business and safety leadership training by DuPont .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees / Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newmont Mining Corporation | Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer | 2013–2016 | Oversaw 12 gold/copper operations; US$7.4B revenue in 2014; pipeline of 22 projects; injury rates lowered >50%; significant cost reductions |
| Rio Tinto Minerals | Chief Operating Officer & VP Operations | Six years | Senior operations leadership across minerals portfolio |
| U.S. Borax Inc. | Chief Operations Officer | Five years | Senior operations leadership in borates |
| Kennecott Utah Copper | VP & GM, Mining & Concentrating | Four years | Site-level operational leadership |
| Detour Gold Corp. | Director; Technical Committee Chair; member Audit, SG&A, Special | 2018–2020 | Led step-change in safety, productivity, cost management |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other current public company boards | N/A | Current | None disclosed |
| Detour Gold Corp. | Director | Prior | 2018–2020; Technical Chair; committee service (Audit, SG&A, Special) |
Board Governance
- Roles: Lead Independent Director; Chair—Compensation; Chair—Technical; Member—Corporate Governance & Nominating .
- Independence: Board determined Robison is independent under SEC, Nasdaq, and Canadian rules .
- Executive sessions: Independent directors meet in executive session; Chair presides and liaises with management .
- Tenure: Director since December 4, 2020 .
| Governance Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| 2024 Board attendance | Board 6/6; Compensation 5/5; Corporate Governance & Nominating 3/4; Technical 5/5; Total meetings 19; 95% attendance |
| 2025 AGM director vote | For 42,005,377; Against 230,351; Abstain 17,542; Broker non-votes 6,135,478 |
| Vote support (press release) | 99.41% For; 0.55% Against; 0.04% Abstained |
| Majority Voting Policy | Plurality-plus; directors with more “withhold” than “for” must tender resignation |
| Committees chaired by Robison | Compensation; Technical |
Fixed Compensation
| Component (2024) | Amount (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | $22,080 | Non-executive director base retainer |
| Lead Independent Director retainer | $9,200 | Additional annual cash retainer |
| Committee Chair—Compensation | $4,025 | Annual chair fee |
| Committee Chair—Technical | $4,025 | Annual chair fee |
| Committee member fees (per committee) | $2,875 | Annual member retainer (Audit, CG&N, Compensation, Technical) |
| 2024 fees earned (cash/DSUs) | $42,205 | Robison elected DSUs for retainers |
| 2024 stock awards (DSUs) | $27,600 | One-time 9,139 DSUs recognition grant; 100% vested at grant; payable at separation |
| Options granted in 2024 | $0 | No director options granted in 2024 |
| Total 2024 director compensation | $69,805 | Sum of fees and stock awards |
| Director ownership guidelines | 3x annual cash retainer; compliance required within 5 years; DSUs count | |
| Guideline compliance status | Met | All directors had reached minimum by 12/31/2024 |
Performance Compensation
| Performance-Linked Element | Metric(s) | Structure / Vesting |
|---|---|---|
| Director DSUs | None disclosed | DSUs for directors vest 100% at grant; payable upon separation; not tied to performance metrics |
The company does not disclose performance-based metrics for director compensation; options were not granted to directors in 2024 .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Paulson Investor Rights Agreement | Paulson may designate two nominees; current designees are Marcelo Kim (Chair) and Andrew Cole; Robison is not a Paulson designee |
| Conflicts framework | Code of Conduct; directors with material interests must abstain; whistleblower program in place |
Expertise & Qualifications
- 40+ years in mining operations, project development, metallurgy, M&A, and regulatory matters; extensive safety and environmental management experience .
- Education: B.Sc. Metallurgical Engineering (University of Nevada, Mackay School of Mines); business leadership programs (London School of Business); safety leadership (DuPont) .
- Classified as independent; leads risk oversight via Technical Committee and pay governance via Compensation Committee .
Equity Ownership
| Component | Quantity | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership | 166,068 | Aggregate reported as of March 21, 2025 |
| Common shares (trust) | 70,000 | Christopher & Mary Robison Revocable Trust; Robison holds voting/investment powers |
| Options—exercisable | 29,500 | 7,375 each from 2021–2024 grants; exercisable |
| DSUs (vested; payable at separation) | 66,568 | Fully vested deferred share units |
| Ownership % of class | <1% | Based on 71,262,344 shares outstanding |
| Hedging/Pledging | Hedging prohibited without CG&N approval (Insider Trading Policy); no pledging disclosed |
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Strong shareholder support (99.41% “For” in 2025), high attendance (95%), independent status, leadership as Lead Independent Director and dual committee chair, and robust ownership alignment via DSUs and director ownership guidelines; presence of majority voting and clawback policies supports investor confidence .
- Watch items: Concentrated shareholder influence (Paulson 34.8% beneficial ownership) warrants ongoing monitoring of independence dynamics, though Robison is not a Paulson designee; continued transparency on any related-party transactions remains important .
No director-specific legal penalties, sanctions, or bankruptcies are noted for proposed directors; independence and conflict management practices are explicitly codified .