Halliburton CEO to retire in June, Jeff Miller to replace Lesar

Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar to stay on as executive chairman

Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar will retire on June 1, the oilfield service provider announced on Wednesday.  Lesar will be replaced by Jeff Miller, board member and Lesar’s longtime deputy.

According to a Reuters report, Lesar will remain at Halliburton as executive chairman until December, 2018 when he reaches the company’s mandatory retirement age of 65.

Lesar was named Halliburton CEO after predecessor Dick Cheney was nominated to be US vice president in 2000.  Following his retirement, he will still be involved in talks with customers and shareholders.

The retiring CEO signed a new employment contract with the world’s second-largest oilfield service company through to the end of next year that will prohibit him from working for peers for another four-year period.

“I have known and worked with Jeff for almost 30 years and have great confidence that he is the best choice to be the next Halliburton CEO,” Lesar said in a statement.

Former and current employees say the 53-year old Jeff Miller has led successful projects and is known for working well with customers and employees.

Donate now! Please support quality journalism by contributing to our Patreon campaign. Even $5 a month helps us continue delivering high quality news and analysis about Canadian and American energy stories that affect your life and your lifestyle.

The first job Miller faces will be to renegotiate contracts with oil producers who have hammered suppliers during the recent oil price downturn.  In 2016, company revenues fell by 33 per cent to $15.9 billion.

Since January, supply companies have been warning oil companies that they need prices for their services to increase.  Service companies had to lay off staff and mothball equipment during the downturn and are looking for increased revenues to help fuel the recovery.

Despite a significant boost in North American shale activity, the Houston and Dubai-based company has been unable to increase costs, which has resulted in weaker profits.

“I look forward to leading our organization as we continue to collaborate and engineer solutions to maximize asset value for our customers,” Miller said in a statement.

Miller joined Halliburton in 1997 and is an accountant by training.  Miller assumes the top job at Halliburton after the company lost its chief financial officer, Mark McCollum in March.  McCollum left to take helm at rival Weatherford.

 

So far this year, Halliburton shares have dropped 14 per cent and closed on Wednesday at $46.34 per share.