Rio Tinto incoming chief Jean-Sébastien Jacques to get £4.8 million pay packet

Miner Rio Tinto has dangled a £4.8 million carrot to its new chief executive to help revive the company when current boss Sam Walsh retires in July.

Walsh is giving way to the head of Rio’s copper and coal division Jean-Sébastien Jacques to steer it through the worst commodities downturn for 20 years.

Jacques will be paid a £1.08 million basic salary with potential bonuses, share payouts and pension contributions taking his package up to a possible £4.8 million.

Rio scrapped its progressive dividend policy last month and pledged to cut $3 billion (£2.1 billion) from capital spending over the next two years.

Walsh, 66, took over in 2013 when Rio sacked former boss Tom Albanese following huge writedowns on his top-of-the-market 2007 swoop for aluminium group Alcan.

Investec mining analyst Jeremy Wrathall said: “Walsh has always said he was put there to steady the ship, which is what he has done.”