New chief executives are dotting the Indian energy landscape as Essar Oil, ONGC, Oil India, Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum, Hindustan Petroleum and the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) are going through a top-deck churn, with new faces replacing the old.
Many women executives are making it to the top in this churn, with some taking over critical positions while a few others are poised to head companies.
Leading the new brigade is DK Sarraf, 56, the current head of ONGC Videsh (OVL), who will be the new chairman and managing director of Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC). Sarraf will replace Sudhir Vasudeva in February next year.
"I'm not new to the company, so am aware of the challenges. It's no secret that subsidy burden and poor net realisation per barrel of oil is a major concern for us - we are discussing the matter with the oil ministry and I am hopeful that it will get resolved," said Sarraf.
"In the current environment, most energy companies are struggling. We are no different and it's up to us to steer the company towards increasing production and profitability," he added.
At Oil India, Rupshikha Borah has taken over as director, finance, becoming the first lady functional director to be appointed to the board of this Navaratna company. A post-graduate in commerce from the Delhi School of Economics, she is the first lady chartered accountant from the North East.
"She has over 27 years of experience in financial management, audit, treasury, corporate finance, strategic planning and is adept at dealing with ministry officials. She is also approachable and takes her team very seriously," said a senior colleague, who didn't want to be named.
On the regulatory front, there will soon be a new head at DGH. BN Talukdar, director for exploration, Oil India, is the new incumbent and he will replace RN Choubey. DGH is the technical arm of the petroleum ministry, and its top job is a keenly watched post since DGH has the powers to make or break the fortunes of any upstream company.
Talukdar, 58, a petroleum engineering graduate from the Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad, has more than 30 years experience. "He is well versed with the ecosystem of the sector and is well networked in the oil ministry. He is a team-oriented manager and has very strong technical skills, so he can hold his own against companies like Reliance, Vedanta and Cairn," said a senior Oil India executive.
There's a change at Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) as well where the 56-year-old B Ashok, who is currently executive director, retail, set to take over as the new chairman of IOC, the country's largest fuel retailer.
While at BPCL, former director, finance, S Vardarajan, took over as chairman and managing director on October 1, this year.
At HPCL, the 57-year-old Nishi Vasudeva, director, marketing, will break the glass ceiling next February to become the first woman ever to head a Navratna PSU. She made history in 2007 by becoming the first women to be appointed to the board of a PSU oil company.
"These are very trying times for PSU fuel retailers, and all the new heads will have their work cut out as the government is determined to reduce the current account deficit (CAD), which could affect subsidy payments. Besides, with elections coming up, diesel prices won't be increased which will also hurt these companies since all of them have huge borrowings," said a senior industry executive.
Source:- timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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