Peako Lands Former Rio Tinto Exploration Chief as Saudi Gold Drilling Nears
Key Takeaways
- Stephen McIntosh joins Peako's board effective 7 September 2026, bringing 39 years of global resources experience including 33 years at Rio Tinto where he served as Global Head of Exploration and Group Executive, Growth & Innovation.
- McIntosh was involved in the discovery or evaluation of major orebodies including Jadar lithium-borate in Serbia, Simandou iron ore in Guinea, and Winu copper in Australia — deposits that reshaped Rio Tinto's growth pipeline.
- Peako holds an 862km² gold exploration portfolio in Saudi Arabia's Central Arabian Gold Region, with three drill-ready prospects sitting within 65km of operating mines including the 2Moz Sukhaybarat and 3.4Moz Bulghah Gold Mines.
- First drilling across multiple high-priority targets commenced in Q3 2026, with subsequent results at Wadi Jarir and Sukhaybarat South confirming the geological thesis underpinning the target generation work.
- McIntosh's 85,000,000 performance rights are structured entirely around shareholder outcomes — share price milestones and resource targets up to 2Moz at >1 g/t — with nil cash consideration and subject to AGM approval.
Stephen McIntosh joins Peako board, bringing 39 years of global mining experience
Peako Limited (ASX: PKO) has appointed Stephen McIntosh as Non-Executive Director, effective 7 September 2026, adding one of the resources sector’s most decorated exploration leaders to its board as the company moves toward first drilling on its Saudi Arabian gold portfolio.
Simultaneously, Ms Rae Clark will resign from the board, though she will continue to support the company in an advisory capacity. The board acknowledged her 14 years of service and valued contribution to Peako.
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A career at the top of global exploration
33 years with Rio Tinto, 45 countries
McIntosh brings 39 years of global resources experience, with 33 of those spent at Rio Tinto. His most recent roles at the company were Global Head of Exploration (five years) and Group Executive, Growth & Innovation (a further five years), the latter making him accountable for most of the group’s global technical functions, including exploration, studies, construction, technical services, data science, automation, R&D and IT. He also chaired Rio Tinto’s Ore Reserve Steering Committee, which carried oversight of all external resources and reserves reporting globally.
A large part of his career was spent working across more than 45 countries, during which he was involved in the management, evaluation or discovery of significant orebodies:
- Lihir and Simberi gold, Papua New Guinea
- Las Cruces copper, Spain
- Murowa diamonds, Zimbabwe
- Simandou iron ore, Guinea
- Jadar lithium-borate, Serbia
- Winu copper, Australia
McIntosh’s current advisory roles span a broad cross-section of global exploration capital. He is presently advising or providing strategic counsel to:
- EMR Capital (resources private equity)
- Chalice Mining (ASX: CHN), in relation to the Gonneville project
- IMDEX (ASX: IMD)
- Genesis Minerals (ASX: GMD)
- Andina Copper (TSX-V: ANDC)
- Cobra Resources (LSE: COBR)
- Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO)
These active engagements signal that McIntosh remains firmly embedded at the frontier of global exploration capital and discovery. This is not a figurehead appointment.
Why McIntosh’s appointment matters for Peako’s Saudi Arabian strategy
Peako holds an 862km² portfolio of gold exploration projects in the Central Arabian Gold Region of Saudi Arabia, comprising six projects located within 65km of operating gold mines, including the 2Moz Sukhaybarat and 3.4Moz Bulghah Gold Mines.
Three prospects are already drill-ready: Sukhaybarat South, Jabal Jumaymah, and Wadi Jarir. Historical intercepts across these targets are high-grade and remain open along strike and at depth:
- 4m @ 11.32 g/t Au
- 7m @ 10.12 g/t Au
- 2m @ 13.53 g/t Au
First drilling across multiple high-priority targets is expected to commence in Q3 2026. McIntosh steps onto the board at the precise moment Peako transitions from target generation to drill evaluation, adding strategic, technical and commercial knowledge along with a deep global industry network.
Peako subsequently reported high-grade gold at Wadi Jarir and Sukhaybarat South once drilling commenced, with results confirming the geological thesis underpinning the target generation work completed ahead of McIntosh joining the board.
Chairman Gernot Abl
“Stephen has operated at the very top of global exploration and mining, bringing a level of technical and commercial knowledge in exploration and ore deposit quality that few in our industry can match…”
Stephen McIntosh
“Peako holds ground in one of the few genuinely under-explored Tier-1 gold provinces still opening to new entrants…”
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Performance rights structure aligns McIntosh’s incentives with shareholders
McIntosh’s remuneration is structured entirely around milestones that benefit all shareholders. Performance rights are proposed to be issued across five tranches of 17,000,000 rights each, all for nil cash consideration, and all subject to shareholder approval at Peako’s next Annual General Meeting (AGM). The AGM approval requirement is a standard governance step.
| Tranche | Volume (Rights) | Vesting Condition | Timeframe | Cash Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tranche 1 | 17,000,000 | $0.012 VWAP over 20 trading days | Within 24 months of issue | Nil |
| Tranche 2 | 17,000,000 | $0.015 VWAP over 20 trading days | Within 24 months of issue | Nil |
| Tranche 3 | 17,000,000 | 10,000m of drilling completed at KSA Projects | No fixed timeframe stated | Nil |
| Tranche 4 | 17,000,000 | 1Moz announced at >1 g/t at KSA Projects | No fixed timeframe stated | Nil |
| Tranche 5 | 17,000,000 | 2Moz announced at >1 g/t at KSA Projects | No fixed timeframe stated | Nil |
The structure is straightforward: McIntosh is rewarded only when share price targets are met or when exploration outcomes that directly benefit all shareholders are delivered. Tranches 4 and 5 in particular tie his incentive directly to the scale of discovery the company is targeting in Saudi Arabia.
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