Board of SSE plc
SSE's Chair, Richard Gillingwater, was first appointed to the Board of SSE in May 2007 and became Chair in July 2015. In recognition of the 2018 UK Corporate Governance Code position surrounding Chair tenure, the Board of SSE continue to believe that Richard should Chair the Board for a further period, ending no later than 31 March 2021, when the RIIO2 Price Control process will have concluded. Richard has agreed to do this, subject to being re-elected to the Board at the Company's AGM. In reaching this conclusion, Richard's other current appointments have been taken into consideration.
The Directors believe that it is in the interests of SSE's shareholders and other stakeholders that the Board, and therefore the Company as a whole, should continue to benefit from his objective judgement, industry experience and the culture of openness and debate that he promotes. They also believe that a time-limited extension to Richard's service as Chair will enable effective succession plans to be implemented and allow a thorough and successful handover to a new Chair to lead the Board and support SSE being a successful and sustainable business in the 2020s. A process for identifying the new Chair will get under way in the course of this year and a further announcement will be made upon appointment of his successor and when an effective date is known.
ENDS