Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation general counsel Randal Barker tells Alex Aldridge what it's like to be legal chief at a fast-growing company in the midst of a recession

While most companies have spent the recession battening down the hatches, the Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC) has been in expansion mode. Last month the FTSE 100 natural resources company, whose main assets are located in Kazakhstan, underlined its intentions to go global by purchasing a 12% stake in Northern Platinum, a South African platinum company.

The move follows ENRC's acquisition last year of Camec, a copper and cobalt producer in the Democratic Republic of Congo, for £584m and prior purchase of 50% stakes in Brazil's BML iron ore project and the Xinjiang Tuoli Taihang Ferro-Alloy ferrochrome operations in China.