Wael Sawan appointed CEO of Shell

Shell France LNG

Shell announced that Ben van Beurden will step down as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the end of 2022. Wael Sawan will be the new CEO of Shell.

Ben Beurden has been Shell CEO since January 1, 2014.

Wael Sawan is currently the Director Integrated Gas, Renewables and Energy Solutions, and was previously the Director Upstream. He is based in The Hague and has been a member of Shell’s Executive Committee (EC) for three years. Prior to joining EC, he was the Executive Vice President Deepwater and a member of the Upstream Leadership Team, and Executive Vice President Qatar and a member of the Integrated Gas Leadership Team.

He has worked in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas during his 25-year Shell career, and has also held roles in Downstream Retail, and in various commercial and New Business Development projects. Wael was born in Beirut, Lebanon, and is a dual Lebanese-Canadian national.

He grew up in Dubai and holds a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from McGill University in Montreal and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He is married to Nicole and they have three sons.

Wael Sawan said: “We will be disciplined and value focused, as we work with our customers and partners to deliver the reliable, affordable and cleaner energy the world needs.”

Ben Beurden leaves a financially strong and profitable company with a robust balance sheet, very strong cash generation capability and a compelling set of options for growth. Ben Beurden was instrumental in leading the 2016 acquisition of BG and the transformational $30 billion divestment of non-core assets that followed.

Ben Beurden unveiled Powering Progress, Shell’s detailed strategy to accelerate our profitable transition to a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050, in February 2021.