The Veolia Environnement ("VE") Board of Directors, chaired by Chairman and CEO Henri Proglio, met on October 21 and unanimously expressed its preference for maintaining the Company's current status as a Société Anonyme (public limited company under French law) governed by a Board of Directors, if Mr. Proglio were to be appointed Chairman and CEO of EDF. If such were to happen, the functions of Chairman of the Veolia Environnement Board of Directors would be separated from those of the VE Chief Executive Officer.
Meeting of the Veolia Environnement Board of Directors and changes to the governance of the Company if Mr. Henri Proglio were to be appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EDF
The Board also expressed, under these circumstances, its wish to appoint:
- Mr. Henri Proglio as non-executive Chairman of the Board;
- Mr. Antoine Frérot, currently Chief Executive Officer of Veolia Water, as Chief Executive Officer of VE.
The Board also recommended that, under these circumstances, a post of Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors be created, and that Mr. Louis Schweitzer, independent director, should be appointed to this post. The role of the Vice-Chairman would be to act as "Senior Independent Director," based on the British model, to assure the proper operation of the governance bodies.
Veolia Environnement
Veolia Environnement (Paris Euronext: VIE and NYSE: VE) is the worldwide reference in environmental services. With more than 330,000 employees the company has operations all around the world and provides tailored solutions to meet the needs of municipal and industrial customers in four complementary segments: water management, waste management, energy management and freight and passenger transportation. Veolia Environnement recorded revenue of €36,2 billion in 2008.
Important Disclaimer
Veolia Environnement is a corporation listed on the NYSE and Euronext Paris. This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current expectations or beliefs and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, including the risks described in the documents Veolia Environnement has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Veolia Environnement does not undertake, nor does it have, any obligation to provide updates or to revise any forward-looking statements. Investors and security holders may obtain a free copy of documents filed by Veolia Environnement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from Veolia Environnement.