ABB (IW 1000/107), a provider of power and automation technologies, announced on Dec. 18 that its Board of Directors unanimously nominated Peter Voser to succeed Hubertus von Grünberg as Chairman.
This action was taken as Chairman Hubertus von Grünberg and Michael Treschow decided not to stand for re-election to the Board of Directors.
“Peter Voser brings intimate knowledge of ABB and its key markets as well as an excellent track record as a leader in large, global organizations," said von Grünberg.
Von Grünberg has been Chairman of the ABB Board since May 2007. During his tenure ABB’s revenues have risen from about $23 billion in 2006 to $42 billion in 2013, whilst net income has doubled.
Under his leadership ABB also achieved an unprecedented global balance in its business across Europe, the Americas, Asia/Middle East and Africa. In his time as Chairman, ABB launched many breakthrough innovations including a breaker for high-voltage direct current (HVDC), the revolutionary human-machine collaborative robot YuMi, and Emax2, the world’s first low-voltage circuit breaker that also functions as an energy manager.
Peter Voser, was CEO of Royal Dutch Shell from 2009 to the end of 2013. Prior to this he served as CFO of Royal Dutch Shell. Between 1982 and 2002 Voser worked for Shell and served in a number of finance and business roles in Switzerland, the UK, Argentina and Chile.
Between 2002 and October 2004, Peter Voser was CFO of ABB Ltd. and a key leader behind the successful turnaround and repositioning of the company for long-term profitable growth. Voser also brings a wealth of experience as a Board member of publicly listed companies such as Roche, UBS (until 2010) and Aegon (until 2006).
Shareholders elect Board members for a one-year term and will vote on the nominations at the AGM on April 30, 2015.
The ABB Group of companies operates in more than 100 countries and employs about 145,000 people.