Shell names van Beurden as surprise choice for CEO

LONDON: Royal Dutch Shell named head of refining Ben van Beurden to replace chief executive Peter Voser, a surprise appointment to steer Europe’s biggest oil firm through an industry-wide battle to replace reserves and control costs.

Analysts and investors had not considered van Beurden, who has worked for the company for 30 years, as a possible contender to replace Voser next year. Their early focus was on finance director Simon Henry and other divisional heads Marvin Odum, Matthias Bichseland and Andrew Brown.