Alcoa's Belda Says Some Alcan Executives May Stay

Alcoa Inc. Chief Executive Officer Alain Belda, who is pursuing a $26.9 billion hostile takeover of Alcan Inc., said some Alcan executives may be offered positions in the combined company if the deal goes through.

"For us, it's a meritocracy, and we'll get the best people we can," Belda said today in response to questions during an investor conference in Dublin. "Good people are a hard thing to find. We have a track record of getting the best people."

The combination would create the world's largest aluminum producer. In merger negotiations held in October, New York-based Alcoa and Montreal-based Alcan agreed that five directors from each company would sit on the combined company's board, Alcoa said in a May 8 regulatory filing.

Belda, 63, would be executive chairman until his retirement and Alcan Chief Executive Richard Evans would be the new company's CEO, according to the filing. Alcan's board called off the talks, Alcoa said.

Alcoa made an unsolicited cash-and-stock bid May 8 after two years of negotiations failed to lead to an agreement. Belda said today he won't comment on specific executive positions "until we sit down and start negotiating one on one."

Chief Financial Officer Chuck McLane and Bernt Reitan, head of the primary metals business, both joined Alcoa's senior management team from acquired companies, Belda said today.

Alcan said May 7 it "will consider the proposal and how it could impact the interests of Alcan's shareholders and other stakeholders." Alcan must respond within 10 days of the May 8 official start of the offer under Securities and Exchange Commission regulations.