CALGARY, ALBERTA - April 10, 2014 /CNW/ - Newalta Corporation ("Newalta") (TSX:NAL) announced today that it has nominated two new directors for election to the Board of Directors at the May 7, 2014 Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders:
- Harvey Doerr, 55, retired in 2009 as Executive Vice President of El Dorado, Arkansas-based Murphy Oil Corporation. With more than 28 years in the oil and gas industry, his experience includes broad exposure to domestic and international exploration and production, heavy oil / oilsands, offshore, refining, retail marketing, acquisition and divestiture, strategic planning and government relations. At Murphy, a major U.S.-based independent oil company, he was responsible for worldwide refining and marketing operations and strategic planning. Mr. Doerr is also on the Board of MEG Energy Corp. of Calgary, which is actively developing enhanced oil recovery projects in Alberta that utilize steam-assisted gravity drainage extraction methods.
- Robert Gemmell, 57, was President and Chief Executive Officer of Citigroup Global Markets Canada and its predecessor companies (Salomon Brothers Canada and Salomon Smith Barney Canada) from 1996 to 2008. In addition, he was a member of the Global Operating Committee of Citigroup Global Markets from 2006 to 2008. Citigroup is one of the world's largest banks, with approximately 200 million customer accounts. Mr. Gemmell is a director of Agnico Eagle Mines Limited, one of the world's largest gold mining companies.
"Harvey Doerr and Robert Gemmell bring deep and relevant experience to Newalta," said Barry Stewart, Chair of the Board. "We are nominating them as part of an orderly board renewal and succession process that began over a year ago and that has included the appointments during the past year of directors Mike Starzer and Laurie Tugman, who bring meaningful experience, respectively, in the U.S. oil and gas and environmental services sectors."
Composition and size of the Board of Directors are reviewed annually. As result of the review and to allow for an effective transition between outgoing and incoming Board members, the Board of Directors appointed Mr. Starzer to the Board in May 2013 and Mr. Tugman to the Board in September 2013. Mr. Doerr and Mr. Gemmell were identified as additional nominees with skills and experiences consistent with advancing Newalta's growth initiatives.
Through the Board renewal process, three directors have indicated an intention to retire from the Board at or prior to the 2015 annual general meeting of shareholders.
Newalta consulted with certain major investors, including Orange Capital, LLC, and respected their views in the development of Newalta's plans as they relate to the board renewal process.
Newalta is North America's leading provider of innovative, engineered environmental solutions that enable customers to reduce disposal, enhance recycling and recover valuable resources from industrial residues. We serve customers onsite directly at their operations and through a network of 85 locations in Canada and the U.S. Our proven processes, portfolio of more than 250 operating permits and excellent record of safety make us the first choice provider of sustainability enhancing services to oil, natural gas, petrochemical, refining, lead, manufacturing and mining markets. With a skilled team of more than 2,200 people, two decade track record of profitable expansion and commitment to commercializing new solutions, Newalta is positioned for sustained future growth and improvement. Newalta trades on the TSX as NAL. For more information, visit www.newalta.com.