Kinross Gold CFO leaving the company

Kinross Gold Corp. said Wednesday that chief financial officer Paul Barry is quitting the company to pursue other interests.

The departure follows a move by Kinross earlier this year to replace chief executive Tye Burt with J. Paul Rollinson in an effort to improve the company's lagging performance.

Mr. Rollinson was executive vice-president of corporate development for the Toronto-based gold miner.

Mr. Barry is expected to remain in his job until a replacement CFO is found, the gold miner said.

Kinross launched a company-wide cost reduction initiative in August in to improve capital efficiency, reduce costs and increase margins.

Shares in Kinross were hit earlier this year after it slowed the development of its three major projects, including the Tasiast mine acquired in 2010 as part of a $7.1-billion (U.S.) deal for Red Back Mining.