Heritage interim Chief Executive Officer Arlene Chow is getting a monthly salary of $150,000 plus perks, acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert confirmed yesterday.
Imbert did so in Parliament, replying to Opposition questions on the terms and conditions of employment of Chow.
She was appointed for six months after Heritage CEO Mike Wylie returned to the US a few months ago for cancer treatment and was said to be running the company from the US together with a local management team.
Last month Government, revealing he’d be let go, stated a permanent officer had to be in place to carry on an important enterprise like Heritage and protracted sick leave couldn’t work. Chow was appointed soon after.
Yesterday Imbert said Chow is also receiving a company car and $1,000 monthly cell phone allowance as well as salary. She was hired for six months from September 1 and the contract can be terminated by her or the company at any time.
On whether Chow will be hired as CEO permanently, Imbert said Heritage’s Board intends to do a worldwide search for a permanent CEO to serve “in due course.”
Imbert confirmed the Energy Ministry selected Chow due to her strong 40-year experience in the energy sector.
This includes chief operating officer at Atlantic LNG, working with BP Alaska and other senior posts.
He lauded the fact that she came forward to assist in the situation when a situation of unforeseen circumstances “could have resulted in severe trauma to the oil company” and he thanked Chow for coming to assist the country.
On a related issue, Imbert said the Government-appointed committee mandated to evaluate bids and make recommendations for the sale/or lease of the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery is expected to make recommendations to Cabinet in the next week “barring unforeseen circumstances,”
The team includes public and private sector officials, including the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Vishnu Dhanpaul, former Petrotrin officials and labour and business representatives.
In July Government projected they would have completed work on recommendations by August 31. But yesterday Imbert said the committee has “not yet determined the buyer”.
That statement has raised speculation that sale—rather than lease—of the refinery may be the eventual direction of the entity. About 70 bids were received in the first stage of the matter in April.
By August, it was reported that it had narrowed down to 25 parties being involved.