Chris Huskilson Appointed Interim CEO,
Succeeding Arun Banskota
Board Commencing Search for a Permanent
CEO
OAKVILLE, ON, Aug. 10,
2023 /PRNewswire/ - Algonquin Power &
Utilities Corp. ("AQN", "Algonquin" or the "Company") (TSX: AQN)
(NYSE: AQN) today announced that energy industry veteran
Christopher Huskilson, a member of
the Algonquin Board of Directors (the "Board") since 2020, has been
appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately.
He succeeds Arun Banskota, who has
stepped down as President and Chief Executive Officer and as a
member of the Board, effective immediately.
The Board has engaged a nationally recognized search firm to
commence a search process to identify a permanent Chief Executive
Officer.
"As AQN prepares to pursue a sale of its renewables business and
move forward as a pure-play regulated utility company, the Board of
Directors has determined that now is the right time to transition
leadership," said Kenneth Moore,
Chair of the Algonquin Board of Directors. "Chris has a record of
driving significant growth in the energy industry, and he knows AQN
and our business well from his tenures on the AQN Board. As we
conduct a search for a permanent CEO, we are confident that Chris
will ensure a smooth transition while we pursue a sale of the
renewables business and position AQN's utility business for its
next phase of standalone growth and value creation."
Kenneth Moore continued, "On
behalf of everyone at AQN, I want to thank Arun for his leadership
and contributions throughout his tenure. Arun guided AQN through
the pandemic and built on the legacy of AQN's founders over his
three years as CEO, and we wish him the best in his future
endeavors."
"It is a privilege to serve as Interim CEO at this critical
juncture for the Company after having chaired the Strategic Review
Committee of the Board," said Chris
Huskilson, Interim CEO. "As we begin the sale process for
the renewables business, our focus remains on executing our
value-creation strategies and operating efficiently across both our
regulated and renewable asset base. I look forward to working with
the Board and management team during this transition period to
build on all the work underway to re-establish AQN as a top tier
utility business and unlock value for shareholders."
Arun Banskota said, "I am proud
to have had the opportunity to serve Algonquin over the past three
years and believe that the Company is well positioned to deliver
long-term, sustainable value for years to come."
Strategic Review Update and Second
Quarter 2023 Earnings
In a separately issued press release, the Company provided an
update on its previously announced strategic review of its
renewables business and announced that its Board of Directors will
pursue a sale of its Renewable Energy Group. The Company also
reported second quarter 2023 earnings. AQN will hold an
earnings conference call at 8:30 a.m.
eastern time this morning, hosted by Interim Chief Executive
Officer, Chris Huskilson, and Chief
Financial Officer, Darren Myers. The
release can be viewed on the Company's Investor Relations page at
AlgonquinPower.com, as well as on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and
EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar.
About Chris Huskilson
Chris is an energy industry veteran with over 20 years of
experience leading utility businesses. His previous roles include
serving as the CEO and a Director of Emera Inc., a publicly traded
and geographically diverse energy and service company based in
Halifax, Nova Scotia. During his
13 years leading Emera, he grew the business through substantial
organic and acquisition-based growth, including more than doubling
the business by acquiring Florida
based TECO Energy in 2015. In addition, he has served as President
and CEO of 5-H Holdings Inc. and the Chair of XOCEAN Ltd. He has
also served as Chair of the Canadian Electricity Association, Chair
of the Energy Council of Canada,
Chair of the Greater Halifax Partnership, and is a founding member
of Canada's Ocean Supercluster,
Dalhousie's Creative Destruction
Lab, and Endeavor Canada. He served on AQN's Board from 2009 to
2016, while Emera held 25% of the Company, and began his current
tenure on the AQN Board in January
2020. Chris holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering, a
Master of Science in Engineering, and a Doctor of Science, Honoris
Causa from the University of New
Brunswick.
About Algonquin Power &
Utilities Corp. and Liberty
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp., parent company of
Liberty, is a diversified international generation, transmission,
and distribution utility with over $17
billion of total assets. AQN is committed to providing safe,
secure, reliable, cost-effective, and sustainable energy and water
solutions through its portfolio of generation, transmission, and
distribution utility investments to over one million customer
connections, largely in the United
States and Canada. In
addition, AQN owns, operates, and/or has net interests in over 4 GW
of installed renewable energy capacity. AQN's common shares,
preferred shares, Series A, and preferred shares, Series D are
listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols AQN,
AQN.PR.A, and AQN.PR.D, respectively. AQN's common shares, Series
2018-A subordinated notes, Series 2019-A subordinated notes and
equity units are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the
symbols AQN, AQNA, AQNB, and AQNU, respectively.
Visit AQN at www.algonquinpower.com and follow us on
Twitter @AQN_Utilities.
Caution Regarding Forward-Looking
Information
Certain statements included in this news release constitute
''forward-looking information'' within the meaning of applicable
securities laws in each of the provinces and territories of
Canada and the respective
policies, regulations and rules under such laws and
''forward-looking statements'' within the meaning of the U.S.
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively,
''forward-looking statements"). The words "will" and "expects" (and
grammatical variations of such terms) and similar expressions are
often intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not
all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words.
Specific forward-looking statements in this news release include,
but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company's pursuit
of a sale of its Renewable Energy Group and the expected impact and
outcomes thereof. These statements are based on factors or
assumptions that were applied in drawing a conclusion or making a
forecast or projection, including assumptions based on historical
trends, current conditions and expected future developments. Since
forward-looking statements relate to future events and conditions,
by their very nature they require making assumptions and involve
inherent risks and uncertainties. AQN cautions that although it is
believed that the assumptions are reasonable in the circumstances,
these risks and uncertainties give rise to the possibility that
actual results may differ materially from the expectations set out
in the forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that a
transaction, strategic change or outcome will result from or be
implemented as a result of the strategic review or that any
transaction resulting therefrom will ultimately enhance shareholder
value or result in a lower cost of capital. Forward-looking
statements contained herein are provided for the purposes of
presenting information about management's current expectations and
plans relating to the future and such information may not be
appropriate for other purposes. Material risk factors and
assumptions include those set out in AQN's Annual Information Form
and Management Discussion & Analysis for the year ended
December 31, 2022, and in AQN's
Management Discussion & Analysis for the three months ended
June 30, 2023, each of which is or
will be available on SEDAR+ and EDGAR. Given these risks, undue
reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements,
which apply only as of their dates. Other than as specifically
required by law, AQN undertakes no obligation to update any
forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent
or otherwise.
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SOURCE Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.