Stern replacing Garrett as Borealis CEO

Mark Garrett has stepped down as CEO of global materials firm Borealis AG, and will be replaced by Alfred Stern.

Garrett decided to leave Vienna-based Borealis after 11 years at the helms "to pursue a new career path," officials said in an April 6 news release. The supervisory board "regrets but accepts this decision," they added, recognizing Garrett's "outstanding contribution to Borealis'success.

Stern, the firm's executive vice president responsible for polyolefins innovation, will take over as CEO July 2.

Garrett joined Borealis in 2007, taking over a company in the final stages of a successful "scrap and build" program in Europe, officials said. The 11 years of Garrett's tenure "represented a significant phase of growth and geographic expansion" for the company with both volumes and net profits tripling.

Garrett also oversaw many projects including the Borouge 2 and 3 petrochemical projects that increased Borealis' annual production capacity for polyethylene, polypropylene and related products from 1.3 billion pounds to almost 10 billion pounds.

According to the release, Garrett regards Borealis' performance at the depths of the global financial crisis as "a true highlight, where the whole Western petrochemical industry incurred multi-billion dollar losses whilst Borealis managed to record a small net profit of 38 million euros ($46 million)."

Borealis recently formed a joint venture to build petrochemical projects on the U.S. Gulf Coast along with Nova Chemicals of Canada and Total SA of France. Borealis and Nova both are majority-owned by Mubadala Investment Co. of Abu Dhabi.

"We have been fortunate to have had Mark Garrett in this position for over a decade, as his leadership has been beneficial to both Borealis and the wider group of Mubadala companies," Chairman H.E. Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei said in the release. Al Mazrouei also serves as Minister of Energy & Industry of the United Arab Emirates.

"[Garrett] has provided continuity and stability, while building a unique and strong business culture with commensurate results," he added.

Stern has been with Borealis since 2008, following a stint at DuPont Co. He was promoted to the executive board in July 2012.

"[Stern] has positioned the Borealis polyolefins business in a difficult, as well as in a favorable, market environment very well and recently shaped the new strategic direction towards the circular economy and in of plastics recycling, board vice-chairman Rainer Seele said in the release.

Borealis employs 6,600 worldwide and posted sales of 7.5 billion euros ($9.2 billion) in 2017.