PRC receivers PricewaterhouseCoopers said Whittall was informed of his termination at the beginning of September.

“He was given a notice at the beginning of the month,” PwC receiver Malcolm Hollis told ILN .

Hollis said the reason for Whittall’s termination was because the role of CEO was no longer required given that PRC was now in the hands of the receivers.

“The insurance claim has been resolved, the mine has been stabilised … and the sale process is well down the track, that we really don’t need Peter’s involvement anymore,” he said.

While Hollis could not comment on how Whittall reacted to the news, he told ILN Whittall had been a valuable member of the company.

“Throughout the last nine months of the receivership he’s been helping us in terms of various matters including stabilisation of the mine, the insurance claim of the tragedy and he’s also been assisting us in the sale of the mine and providing information to prospective buyers,” Hollis said.

He said Whittall would proceed with his normal roles at the company, including his involvement with the sale of the mine until he left.

PRC went into receivership last year, after an explosion at the mine killed 29 men.

A Royal Commission of Inquiry into the blast has just completed the second phase of hearing evidence, which focused on the search, rescue and recovery effort at the mine, from the November 19 tragedy.

PwC recently reached an agreement with PRC’s insurers on an $NZ80 million payout, settling insurance claims from the explosion.

Hollis couldn’t confirm exactly when the mine would be sold but said a sale was on the horizon.

“We are talking with a number of interested parties, and it could be a few months until a new owner takes control of the mine,” he said.