HOUSTON, Dec. 13, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Cheniere
Energy, Inc. ("Cheniere") (NYSE MKT: LNG), along with subsidiaries
Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE MKT: CQP) and Cheniere Energy
Partners LP Holdings, LLC (NYSE MKT: CQH), announced today that its
Board of Directors has appointed Board member Neal A. Shear as interim President and Chief
Executive Officer, and the Cheniere Board has appointed Board
member G. Andrea Botta as Chairman
of its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Shear has
also been appointed the Chairman of the Boards of Cheniere Energy
Partners GP, LLC, the general partner of Cheniere Energy Partners,
L.P., and Cheniere Energy Partners LP Holdings, LLC. The
appointments follow the Board's decision to replace Charif Souki, Cheniere's co-founder, Chairman,
President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately.
"The Board of Directors thanks Charif for his entrepreneurial
spirit over the past 19 years. Under his leadership, Cheniere was
established as a first mover in LNG exports and is positioned to
become a significant player in the global LNG markets," said lead
independent director David B.
Kilpatrick.
"With Sabine Pass Liquefaction's first of five LNG trains
nearing completion and with the overall construction of both
Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi projects advancing as planned,
Cheniere will transition into an operating company with stable and
growing positive cash flow underpinned by long-term offtake
agreements with investment grade energy companies worldwide," said
newly elected Board Chairman G. Andrea
Botta. "The changes announced today will serve Cheniere well
in creating and sustaining shareholder value, while continuing to
explore a limited number of strategic initiatives within the LNG
industry."
"Cheniere is well positioned for growth in the global LNG
markets and the Board has the utmost confidence in our management
team given its significant accomplishments against key milestones,"
noted interim President and CEO Neal
Shear.
The Governance and Nominating Committee of the Board will
immediately begin a search for a permanent CEO. Mr. Shear, together
with a special committee of the Board of Directors, will work with
Cheniere's executive team to facilitate an orderly leadership
transition. In addition, Board member Nuno
Brandolini will take over as head of Cheniere's Compensation
Committee.
Mr. Shear, a member of Cheniere's Board of Directors since 2014,
is a 30-year industry veteran with experience managing global
commodities activities and investments across a variety of asset
classes. He is a partner of Silverpeak Strategic Partners LP, a
private investment company, and served as the Chief Executive
Officer of Higgs Capital Management, a commodity-focused hedge
fund, until 2014. Prior to Higgs Capital Management, Mr. Shear
served as Global Head of Securities at UBS Investment Bank and was
a Partner at Apollo Global Management. Mr. Shear spent 26 years at
Morgan Stanley as a founder of its Commodities Business, serving in
several leadership roles, including Head of the Commodities
Division, Global Head of Fixed Income and Co-Head of Institutional
Sales and Trading.
Mr. Botta has been a member of Cheniere's Board of Directors
since 2010. Since 2006, Mr. Botta has served as President of Glenco
LLC, a private investment company. Prior to joining Glenco, Mr.
Botta served as Managing Director of Morgan Stanley from 1999 to
2006. He served as President of EXOR America, Inc. (formerly
IFINT-USA, Inc.), holding company
of the Agnelli family, from 1993 until 1999 and for more than five
years prior as Vice President of Acquisitions of IFINT-USA, Inc. He serves on the Board of Directors
of Graphic Packaging Holding Company, chairing its Compensation
Committee.
About Cheniere Energy, Inc.
Cheniere Energy, Inc., a Houston-based energy company primarily engaged
in LNG-related businesses, owns and operates the Sabine Pass LNG
terminal and Creole Trail Pipeline in Louisiana. Through its subsidiary, Cheniere
Energy Partners, L.P., Cheniere is developing liquefaction projects
at the Sabine Pass LNG terminal and near Corpus Christi, Texas. Cheniere is also
exploring a limited number of opportunities directly related to its
existing LNG business. For additional information, please refer to
the Cheniere website at www.cheniere.com and Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2015, filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission.
This press release contains certain statements that may include
"forward-looking statements" within the meanings of Section 27A of
the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of
historical fact, included herein are "forward-looking statements."
Included among "forward-looking statements" are, among other
things, (i) statements regarding Cheniere's business strategy,
plans and objectives, including the development, construction and
operation of liquefaction facilities and its intent to transition
into an operating company with stable and growing positive cash
flow underpinned by long-term offtake agreements with investment
grade energy companies worldwide, (ii) statements regarding
expectations regarding regulatory authorizations and approvals,
(iii) statements expressing beliefs and expectations regarding the
development of Cheniere's LNG terminal and pipeline businesses,
including liquefaction facilities, (iv) statements regarding the
business operations and prospects of third parties, (v) statements
regarding potential financing arrangements and (vi) statements
regarding future discussions and entry into contracts. Although
Cheniere believes that the expectations reflected in these
forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve
assumptions, risks and uncertainties, and these expectations may
prove to be incorrect. Cheniere's actual results could differ
materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking
statements as a result of a variety of factors, including those
discussed in Cheniere's periodic reports that are filed with and
available from the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should
not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which
speak only as of the date of this press release. Other than as
required under the securities laws, Cheniere does not assume a duty
to update these forward-looking statements.
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SOURCE Cheniere Energy, Inc.