After 35 years leading the metallurgical company, Javier Targhetta will be the new Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Huelva-based company

Huelva, March 4, 2025. The Board of Directors of Atlantic Copper has appointed Macarena Gutiérrez as its new CEO, making her the first woman to hold this position in the company’s history. Gutiérrez, who was previously CFO & CAO, replaces Javier Targhetta, who, after 35 years in the role, assumes the company’s Board of Directors Chairman position. During his years of management, Targhetta has positioned Atlantic Copper as a global reference in sustainable refined copper production.

“It is an honor to continue the path set by Javier Targhetta over these 35 years. I highlight his great leadership steering Atlantic Copper and I am immensely grateful for the opportunity given to me by both Javier and Freeport. I take on the leadership of a strong company, with a highly committed team with whom we will face the great challenges of the future, where innovation, sustainability, and digitalization will be essential tools to drive the necessary changes to compete in a global, complex, and constantly evolving environment,” said Gutiérrez.

For his part, Javier Targhetta emphasized: “I am very pleased with the appointment of Macarena, who is a great professional, as CEO of Atlantic Copper to lead this new stage. Her deep knowledge of the company and the sector, combined with her strategic vision, make her an ideal leader to face the great challenges that Atlantic Copper has ahead and to reach even higher levels of excellence. I want to express my deep gratitude to Freeport and, specifically, to Richard Adkerson, Chairman of the Board, Freeport-McMoRan; and Kathleen Quirk, Chief Executive Officer, Freeport-McMoRan, for the trust they have always placed in me and for the great support they have consistently provided to Atlantic Copper”.

Strategic Vision Leadership

The new CEO will take office, effective April 1, at a key moment for the global raw materials sector, with the commitment to drive the company’s future towards an innovative business model, digital and more diversified towards circularity with the aim of strengthening Atlantic Copper’s role in the production of essential metals to face the great challenges of the energy transition and digitalization.

Macarena Gutiérrez holds a degree in Business Administration and a Diploma in Executive Development and Board of Directors, both from IESE. She began her career at Deloitte (Arthur Andersen) in 1993, in the Audit area. In 1997, she joined Atlantic Copper as Head of Financial Control and, four years later, was appointed Director of Planning and Control. In 2005, she assumed the position of Chief Financial Officer and, in June 2022, was appointed CFO & CAO of the company.

In recognition of her career, in 2022 she was included in the list of 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining, which recognizes the most influential women in the mining and metallurgical industry worldwide. Additionally, Macarena is an Independent Director of DKV Seguros and has been a director of several startups in the real estate and technology sectors. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Atlantic Copper Foundation and the DKV Integralia Foundation and is a member of the board of directors of the Spanish Institute of Analysts of the Andalusian delegation.

The Legacy of Javier Targhetta

Javier Targhetta, a Mining Engineer and graduate in Senior Business Management from IESE, has led Atlantic Copper since 1990. Since 2005, he has combined his role at Atlantic Copper with that of Senior Vice President of Marketing and Sales at Freeport-McMoRan, taking on the responsibility for global copper concentrate sales.

Targhetta is president of Primigea and the Minería y Vida Foundation, as well as vice president of Fortia Energía. Throughout his career, among other senior positions, he was Chairman and CEO of Empresa Nacional Elcano and Compañía Trasatlantica Española and chaired the Spanish Association of Large Energy Consumers (AEGE), Eurometaux, and the European Copper Institute, and has been a member of the boards of prestigious companies in the chemical and metallurgical sector.

For his contribution to the industry and the socio-economic development of Huelva and Andalusia, Targhetta has been awarded the Medal of Andalusia and the Medal of the City of Huelva.