OKLAHOMA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
John Richels
(63), president and CEO of Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:
DVN), has announced his retirement effective July 31, 2015. The board of
directors intends to elect
Dave Hager
(58), currently Devon’s chief
operating officer, to succeed Richels as president and CEO. The board of
directors has elected Richels vice chairman of the board, effective
immediately, with the intent for Richels to replace
Larry Nichols
(72)
as chairman upon Nichols’ retirement from the board in 2016. At that
time, Nichols is expected to become chairman emeritus.
“John’s vision and leadership have delivered significant value to Devon
shareholders for many years and particularly as we recently repositioned
and rebalanced the company as a leading North American exploration and
production company,” said Nichols, Devon’s co-founder and executive
chairman. “His leadership, honesty, humility and integrity are evident
on a daily basis and have helped to make Devon a valued partner,
employer and neighbor in the areas where we operate.”
"Dave is a strong, visionary leader, with the business expertise and
industry knowledge to guide Devon as we enter the next phase of our
company’s growth," said Richels. "Dave has been instrumental in the
rebalancing of our portfolio and his focus on creating shareholder
value, his integrity and his many other positive attributes will serve
all stakeholders well.”
“With our recent portfolio transformation, Devon is in an extremely
strong position. We have a great collection of assets and a terrific
management team in place to lead the business. I’m very excited about
Devon’s future,” said Richels.
Richels joined Devon in 1998 and led Devon Canada Corporation, Devon’s
Canadian subsidiary, until being elected president of Devon in 2004. In
2007, Richels joined Devon’s board of directors and was elected chief
executive officer in 2010. Immediately prior to joining Devon, Richels
was chief financial officer of Canadian-based Northstar Energy
Corporation. Richels has served as a director of a number of publicly
traded companies and previously was managing partner of the
Canadian-based national law firm Bennett Jones. Richels also served as
general counsel of the XV Olympic Winter Games Organizing Committee in
Calgary.
Hager has been with Devon since 2009, when he was named executive vice
president of exploration and production. From 2007 until joining the
company, Hager served as a member of the Devon board of directors. Hager
has 35 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, having started
his career in 1979 as a geophysicist with Mobil Corp., and joined Sun
Oil Co. (predecessor of Oryx Energy Co.) in 1981. Upon the
Kerr-McGee/Oryx merger in 1999, he became vice president of Gulf of
Mexico operations for Kerr-McGee. There he held positions of increasing
responsibility, including vice president of international operations and
vice president of worldwide deepwater exploration and production. He was
promoted to senior vice president responsible for oil and gas
exploration and production in 2003, and chief operating officer in 2005.
He has a bachelor's degree in geophysics from Purdue University and a
master's degree in business administration from Southern Methodist
University.
Devon Energy Corporation is an Oklahoma City-based independent energy
company engaged in oil and gas exploration and production. Devon is a
leading U.S.-based independent oil and gas producer and is included in
the S&P 500 Index. For additional information, visit our website at www.devonenergy.com.
Source: Devon Energy Corporation