OCI N.V. (NYSE Euronext: OCI) announced today that its Non-Executive Board of Directors will propose the appointment of Mr. Gregory Heckman as an independent non-executive member of the Board of Directors to the next general meeting of shareholders (AGM) to be held on 10 June 2015.
Mr. Heckman (1962) is a US citizen with more than 30 years of experience in the agriculture and energy industries. From 2008 until 2014, he was president and chief executive officer of US-headquartered The Gavilon Group, LLC (Gavilon), which he firmly established as one of the leading agriculture and energy commodity management firms in the world under his leadership. Prior to Gavilon, Mr. Heckman spent 24 years with ConAgra Foods, most recently as chief operating officer of Commercial Products and president of ConAgra Trade Group. In 2008, Mr. Heckman led the sale of ConAgra Foods’ commodity division through a management buy-out to Gavilon, which was established by a group of private investors for that purpose. In 2013, following a strategic review, Gavilon’s agriculture business was sold to Marubeni Corporation and the energy business to NGL Energy Partners for a combined equity value of $3.7 billion. Greg is a member of the board of consumer brands holding company Waitt Brands. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture economics and marketing from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Further, at the AGM on 10 June 2015, Mr. Kees van der Graaf will not continue his term as an independent non-executive member of the Board of Directors of OCI N.V. in order to dedicate more time to his bio-tech start-up Facio Therapies BV., a company focused on the development of a therapy that stops the progression of muscular dystrophy disease FSHD. Mr. Van der Graaf has served OCI N.V.’s Board of Directors since 2013, chaired the The Health, Safety and Environment Committee and has also been a member of the Nomination & Governance Committee during that time.
Nassef Sawiris, Chief Executive Officer of OCI N.V. commented: “We are delighted to nominate Gregory Heckman as an independent non-executive member of our board of directors. Greg is an accomplished leader with extensive experience in sectors relevant to OCI, and particularly in the United States where OCI’s growth strategy is focused. His deep knowledge of our sectors, combined with a proven entrepreneurial track record of value-creating achievements, will add significant industry expertise to our board. We would also like to thank Kees for his valuable contribution as member of the Board of Directors and the respective Board Committees. We support his decision and wish him well for the future.”
Pending all necessary approvals at the upcoming AGM, OCI N.V.’s Board of Directors will comprise independent non-executive chairman Michael Bennett, executive directors Nassef Sawiris (Chief Executive Officer) and Salman Butt (Chief Financial Officer), non-executive director Jérôme Guiraud, and independent non-executive directors Gregory Heckman, Robert Jan van de Kraats, Sipko Schat and Jan Ter Wisch.
