Kenneth Lane, Executive Vice
President, Global Olefins & Polyolefins, Will Serve as Interim
CEO During Transition Period
HOUSTON and LONDON, Dec. 13,
2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LyondellBasell (NYSE: LYB) today
announced that the Board of Directors has appointed Peter Vanacker, President and CEO of Neste
Corporation, as its new Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Vanacker
succeeds Bhavesh V. "Bob" Patel, who will retire from the Company
on December 31, 2021, as previously
announced.
Mr. Vanacker will assume his role no later than June 2022, upon satisfaction of the notice period
under his current employment agreement, at which time he will also
join the Company's Board of Directors. The Board also announced
that Kenneth (Ken) Lane, executive
vice president, Global Olefins & Polyolefins (O&P) for
LyondellBasell, will serve as interim CEO upon Mr. Patel's
retirement.
"Peter's outstanding leadership and industry experience made him
the Board's choice in an exceptional field of candidates who were
considered as part of the comprehensive search process," said
Jacques Aigrain, Board Chair. "The Board is confident that his
success in delivering value to shareholders, along with his
strategic and forward-thinking mindset, will serve the Company well
as we continue to drive growth and advance our climate and
circularity goals."
Mr. Vanacker brings more than 30 years of industry experience to
his new role, including serving as President and CEO of Neste, an
industry-leading renewable products company that has seen
substantial growth and transformation under his leadership since
2018. Prior to that role, Mr. Vanacker was CEO and Managing
Director of the CABB Group, a leader in the fine chemicals global
market, and he was CEO and Managing Director of Treofan Group, a
global leader in the polypropylene films business. He previously
had a succession of roles at Bayer AG, including as EVP and Head of
the Global Polyurethanes business and member of the Executive
Committee of Bayer Material Science, now Covestro. During his
tenure with Bayer, Peter worked across various subsidiaries,
including in Belgium, Brazil, Germany and the
United States. He is the Chair of the Advisory Board for the
European Institute for Industrial Leadership and a member of the
Supervisory Board of Symrise AG.
"I am thrilled to join LyondellBasell at such an exciting time
for the Company," said Mr. Vanacker. "I have long admired it as an
industry leader in technology, product innovation and, more
recently, circularity. Pulling from my own experiences, I will
strive to build on the Company's momentum and work to continue
offering great value to shareholders while advancing the Company's
sustainability goals. I look forward to joining this strong
leadership team, engaging with its devoted employees, and moving
the Company forward, together."
"We are very pleased that Ken will serve as Interim CEO during
the transition period. He brings a wealth of Company knowledge,
leadership and dedication to his work. On behalf of the Board, I
thank him for stepping up to help ensure business continuity and
continued robust financial and operational performance during the
transition period. I would also like to thank Bob again for his
service to the Company, its people and other stakeholders, and wish
him the very best for the future," Mr. Aigrain said.
Mr. Lane joined LyondellBasell in July
2019 and oversees the O&P Americas and O&P Europe,
Asia & International (EAI)
segments. Prior to joining LyondellBasell, Mr. Lane held a variety
of positions with BASF, including president of the Monomers
Division and president of BASF Catalysts. Before BASF, Mr. Lane
also held a number of positions with BP Chemicals. He will continue
to serve in his current role while also acting as interim CEO.
About LyondellBasell
LyondellBasell (NYSE: LYB) is one of the largest plastics,
chemicals and refining companies in the world. Driven by its
employees around the globe, LyondellBasell produces materials and
products that are key to advancing solutions to modern
challenges like enhancing food safety through lightweight and
flexible packaging, protecting the purity of water supplies through
stronger and more versatile pipes, improving the safety, comfort
and fuel efficiency of many of the cars and trucks on the road, and
ensuring the safe and effective functionality in electronics and
appliances. LyondellBasell sells products into more than 100
countries and is the world's largest producer of polypropylene
compounds and the largest licensor of polyolefin technologies. In
2021, LyondellBasell was named to FORTUNE Magazine's list of the
"World's Most Admired Companies" for the fourth consecutive
year. More information about LyondellBasell can be found
at www.lyondellbasell.com.
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SOURCE LyondellBasell