Michael K. Wirth has been named to take the lead at US supermajor Chevron, following the decision of the current CEO John S. Watson to retire, effective 1 February 2018.
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Wirth. Images from Chevron.
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Chevron’s board of directors elected Wirth to take the reigns as CEO, and serve as the chairman of the board. Wirth is currently vice chairman of the board and executive vice president of Midstream and Development, and has been in that position since 2016.
Wirth joined Chevron in 1982 as a design engineer. Since that time, he advanced through a number of engineering, construction and operations positions. Wirth was named vice chairman of the board of directors in February 2017. Prior to 2016, he was executive vice president of Downstream and Chemicals for nearly a decade. He’s also served as president of Global Supply and Trading and president of Marketing for Chevron's Asia/Middle East/Africa business, based in Singapore. He also served on the board of directors for Caltex Australia Ltd.and GS Caltex in South Korea.
"Mike is a proven leader who is ideally suited to lead Chevron into the next chapter of our history," said Watson. "He has the right values, knowledge and experience, and has established a strong record of accomplishment in his 35 years with the company."
Wirth, 56, said, "I appreciate the confidence that John and the board have placed in me. Chevron has a proud 138-year history of developing the energy that improves lives and powers the world forward. I am honored to have been selected to carry on that tradition.
Watson is set to retire early next year, after 37 years of service, including eight years as chairman and CEO.
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Watson.
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Watson, who turns 61 in October, joined Chevron in 1980 as a financial analyst and went on to hold financial, analytical and supervisory positions before being appointed president of Chevron Canada Limited in 1996. In 1998, he was named a corporate vice president with responsibility for strategic planning and mergers and acquisitions.
In 2000, Watson led the company's integration effort following the Chevron-Texaco merger and then became the corporation's chief financial officer. In 2005, he became president of Chevron International Exploration and Production. In April 2009, he was named vice chairman of the company, before being elected chairman and CEO in September of that year.
"I have been blessed to have had the extraordinary opportunity to lead Chevron, and I will miss my daily interactions with our dedicated employees around the world," said Watson. "I am proud of many Chevron accomplishments, but none more so than the improvements we made in process safety and leadership development."
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