Centrica boss jumps ship to head up Aggreko

CANNOCK-based portable power supplier Aggreko has announced the appointment of a new chief executive.

Chris Weston has joined the business from Centrica, where he is currently managing director of the group’s International Downstream division. In this role he is operationally responsible for both British Gas in the UK and Direct Energy in the USA, with revenues of £22bn, profits of £1.3bn and over 35,000 employees.
 
He joined Centrica in 2001 after a successful career in the telecoms industry, working for both Cable & Wireless and One.Tel. Before that, he served in the Royal Artillery before earning a BSc in Applied Science, as well as an MBA and PhD from Imperial College London.  
 
He is expected to join Aggreko next year once he has completed his commitments at Centrica.
 
Angus Cockburn, Aggreko’s Interim CEO, will continue this role. Cockburn had previously indicated to the Aggreko board that he would not apply for the role on a permanent basis and that, after 14 years with the business, principally as CFO, he was keen to seek fresh challenges.  Accordingly, he will step down from the group later in the year.
 
Aggreko has also announced that Carole Cran, currently Interim CFO, will step up to the role full time. Additionally, she will become an Executive Director of Aggreko and will join the board with immediate effect. Ms Cran joined Aggreko in 2004 and has worked closely with Cockburn as Group Financial Controller and more recently as Director of Finance.
 
Ken Hanna, chairman of Aggreko, said: “I am delighted to welcome Chris to Aggreko on behalf of all the board and the company. Chris brings senior experience of the energy industry and proven leadership skills in a large international business.  He has consistently succeeded in driving performance and growth in his career and we believe he has the skills and vision to continue Aggreko’s growth and lead the group to the next level.”

Weston said: “Aggreko is a fascinating business and I’m very excited to be taking on this role. I have watched and admired Aggreko’s tremendous growth over recent years and I look forward to working with Carole and the entire management team to develop the company further in the coming years.”