Tony Hayward, the former head of BP who was reviled in the United States for his handling of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, is in talks to join the board of commodities group Glencore, the Sunday Times reported.

Hayward stepped down from the BP role in September after provoking outrage in the United States with a series of gaffes following the country's worst-ever oil spill, which began with a deepsea rig explosion that killed 11 workers.

Glencore declined to comment on the report.

The privately held group is considering listing in the first half of 2011, sources close to the situation have told Reuters.

A separate source close to the situation said that if Glencore listed, it would have to appoint a new board, including a new chairman, to comply with corporate governance standards, but the source declined to comment on possible names.

(Reporting by Kate Holton and Eric Onstad; Editing by Will Waterman)

Oil Spill