Russian billionaire Viktor Vekselberg resigned as chairman of Rusal on Tuesday, saying the company's bad management style, led by CEO Oleg Deripaska, has brought on a debt crisis to the world's largest aluminium producer.

Vekselberg, who has an indirect stake in the company, clashed with Rusal on strategic development issues, human resources policies and matters concerning modernisation of production.

Vekselberg said in a statement: “It is with great regret that I have to state that, due to the actions of its management, Rusal is presently facing a deep crisis as a result of which it has in my opinion deteriorated from an international aluminium leader into a company overburdened with debt and entangled in numerous lawsuits and social conflicts.”

In a company statement following the resignation Rusal said that it intended to find a replacement for Vekselberg as he failed to attend an annual shareholders' meeting in Hong Kong in 2011 as well as several live board meetings.

Rusal's Deripaska accused Vekselberg of failing to have carried out his chairman role correctly over the past year, saying he “failed to perform his functions.”