CEO, board members quit Russian metals giant amid sanctions

MOSCOW – Russian aluminum maker Rusal says its CEO and seven board members have quit, a move that comes as the company struggles to survive U.S. sanctions.

U.S. has hit Rusal and its major shareholder, billionaire Oleg Deripaska, with sanctions cutting the company off from international financial institutions and spooking international customers. The penalties were part of an array of measures that targeted Deripaska and other tycoons close to the Kremlin.

The U.S. authorities have extended a deadline for dealings with Rusal and indicated that the sanctions could be lifted if Deripaska surrenders control. Rusal’s move Thursday represented an attempt to persuade the U.S. to roll back the sanctions.

Deripaska already agreed to cut his stake in EN+, a holding company that controls Rusal, and resign from the company’s board.