British-born Hayward, who was appointed interim chairman of Glencore Xstrata last May, was CEO of BP from 2007 to 2010 and left in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Hayward, 56, is expected to be confirmed in his new position on Thursday and will not leave Genel imminently but will spend increasing periods of time focused on his new role, according to the British newspaper.

Major shareholders in the FTSE-100 Glencore are understood to have insisted Hayward not take on the role of chairman while holding another full-time post.

Hayward will leave Genel after a successor has been found and a handover period allowed to take place.

Swiss-based commodity producer and trader Glencore's annual meeting is scheduled for May 20.

(Reporting by Tasim Zahid in Bangalore; Editing by Eric Walsh)

Stocks treated in this article : Glencore Xstrata PLC, Genel Energy PLC
Valeurs citées dans l'article : Xstrata PLC, Glencore Xstrata PLC, Genel Energy PLC, BP plc