Stephen Lussier, chief executive officer of De Beers Group’s Forevermark brand, has taken over as chairman of the Diamond Producers Association (DPA) from Jean-Marc Lieberherr, a spokesperson for the DPA confirmed with Rapaport News.
Lieberherr, who until recently was the managing director of Rio Tinto’s diamond division, became the DPA’s first chairman in October 2015, shortly after the body was set up. However, he stepped down from the role following his departure from Rio Tinto in January.
Lussier, a vice-president of marketing at De Beers, was the vice-chairman of the DPA under Lieberherr. Jim Pounds, an executive vice-president at Dominion Diamond Corporation, will revolve into Lussier’s former role at the DPA, the spokesperson said in an email.
The DPA is a consortium of seven of the major diamond-mining companies. Its aim is to enhance consumer demand for diamonds through a variety of initiatives, including the joint category marketing initiative. DPA’s board members include representatives from ALROSA, De Beers, Rio Tinto, Dominion Diamond, Lucara Diamond Corporation, Petra Diamonds and Gem Diamonds.
