American Water, the largest and most geographically diversified provider of water services in North America, announced the appointment of George MacKenzie as interim president and CEO of American Water, effective January 1, 2006. He will report directly to Harry Roels, CEO of RWE AG, American Water's corporate parent.
MacKenzie has been a member of the American Water Board of Directors since August 2003 and also has served as the chair of the Audit Committee of the Board since February 2004.
Roels has stated, "George's knowledge of American Water and his leadership qualities position him well to carry forward the strengths that have made the company the market leader it is today."
In addition to being a director of American Water, Mackenzie serves on the Board of Trustees of the Medical Center of Delaware and is a member of the Investment Committee at the University of Delaware. He is also a Director of Central Vermont Public Service Corp., Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. and C&D Technologies, Inc., where he also served as Interim CEO early in 2005.
MacKenzie previously served as vice chairman of the Board and CFO of Hercules Inc., a global manufacturer of chemical specialties whose 5,000 employees generated sales of approximately $2 billion in fiscal 2004. During his 22-year career with Hercules, he served in a variety of senior management roles. Jeremy Pelczer, the current president and CEO of American Water, will continue to serve as a non-executive chairman of American Water and head of RWE Thames Water.
Source: American Water
