MOSCOW (MRC) -- At its meeting on December 16, 2015, Total’s Board of Directors elected Patrick Pouyanne, Chief Executive Officer of Total since October 22, 2014 and director since May 29, 2015, Chairman of the Board of Directors, said the producer on its site.
As announced on October 22, 2014, Mr. Pouyanne therefore becomes Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Total, following the Board’s decision to recombine the two roles.
He succeeds Thierry Desmarest, whose term as Chairman of the Board of Directors expires on December 18, 2015, in line with the age limits specified in the Group’s bylaws. Thierry Desmarest, Honorary Chairman, will remain as a director until the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting on May 24, 2016.
In addition, upon the recommendation of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, the Board of Directors has decided to create the position of Lead Independent Director. The Lead Independent Director will in particular oversee the efficient running of the company’s governance structure, will chair the Governance and Ethics Committee and will be a key contact for shareholders on issues related to the Board of Directors’ responsibilities.
Patricia Barbizet, an independent director since 2008, has been appointed by the Board of Directors as Lead Independent Director. In this capacity, she will chair the Governance and Ethics Committee. She will also be a member of the Compensation Committee.
As MRC wrote previously, in late 2014, Total, Europe’s third-largest oil company, permanently shut its high density polyethylene (HDPE) line in Belgium. The plant was shut permanently owing to weak margins which have arisen on account of cheap imports in the region. Located at Antwerp in Belgium, the line had a production capacity of 70,000 mt/year.
Total S.A. is a French multinational oil and gas company and one of the six "Supermajor" oil companies in the world with business in Europe, the United States, the Middle East and Asia. The company's petrochemical products cover two main groups: base chemicals and the consumer polymers (polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene) that are derived from them.
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