LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Eurasian Natural Resources Corp PLC (ENRC.LN) said Friday it has appointed two new independent non-executive board directors, and promoted another to senior independent board director, to try and strengthen the expertise and independence of its board. ENRC chairman Mehmet Dalman, who took the helm of the board in February as a independent, non-executive board member, had previously said he wanted to bring "fresh blood" to ENRC's board after the company had completed its corporate governance review, and in order to help guide the company through the development of its project pipeline in Africa and Brazil. The two new board members, Richard Burrows and Mohsen A. Khalil, will join the board from the close of the company's annual general meeting on June 12, while existing independent board member Terence Wilkinson will become the senior independent board member, a post previously held by Dalman before he became chairman, with immediate effect. The additions bring ENRC's total board of directors to 12 from 10. Burrows currently serves at the chairman of British American Tobacco PLC (BATS.LN) and served as CEO of Irish Distillers and Pernod Ricard SA (RI.FR) in the past. He is a member of the Trilateral Commission which fosters closer co-operation among democratic industrialized nations and is a non-executive director at Rentokil Initial (RTO.LN) and Carlsberg A/S (CABGY). Mohsen A. Khalil serves as the global head of the World Bank and International Monetary Funds's Climate Business Group. During his 14-year tenure at the World Bank, Khalil held several managerial positions including Director of IFC's Central Asia, Middle East and North Africa Department, and Chief Investment Officer in the Telecommunications, Transport, and Utilities Department. "The company will greatly benefit from Richard's impressive FTSE 100 experience, and invaluable emerging markets and transaction expertise," said Dalman in a statement. "Mohsen brings a strong track record in project finance, as well as a global outlook together with in-depth knowledge of Africa and emerging markets. Their experience and insight will greatly assist us in the future development of the group," he added. -By Alex MacDonald, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0)20 7842 9328; alex.macdonald@dowjones.com
