An Aberdonian has been named for the top job at Canadian engineering and construction company SNC-Lavalin.
Neil Bruce, a former chief operating officer of Amec, will take over the role of president and chief executive from Robert Card who will continue to be an advisor to the firm after he steps down in October.
Mr Bruce – who is an honorary professor at the Aberdeen Business School at Robert Gordon University – has been credited with being the architect of the firm’s £1.3billion takeover of Kentz Corp and growing SNC-Lavalin’s oil and gas business from a niche 3,000-employee player into a 20,000-strong division.
Mr Bruce joined the firm as chief operating officer last year.
SNC-Lavalin chairman Lawrence Stevenson, said: “Neil’s appointment comes as we embark on the next stage of the company’s evolution.
“Over the past two and a half years, he led the company’s mining and metallurgy and oil and gas businesses, including the acquisition of Kentz and its successful integration that transformed SNC-Lavalin’s oil and gas business.
“The board is thrilled to have a leader of his caliber with deep project management and execution experience to lead and grow the company.”
Meanwhile, Inverness-based cruise company Jacobite Cruises has promoted Pauline Wilson to its board of directors after two years with the business.
Former oil and gas executive Ms Wilson joined the board of Jacobite as operations director on 1 September 2015. Her role involves managing 33 seasonal and permanent staff, financial planning, bookings, marketing and overseeing maintenance on the company’s four boats.
Ms Wilson said: “This year has been particularly exciting for Jacobite – we’ve launched a new £1 million boat, the Jacobite Rebel; moved to a new base at Dochgarroch; celebrated our 40th anniversary; and undertaken a complete rebrand. All of this while experiencing a 10% rise in visitor numbers to 180,000 since September last year.”
Freda Newton, managing director, said she was looking forward to letting Ms Wilson take over the day-to-day running of the firm while she focused on her worth with VisitScotland to “promote the Highlands to key markets internationally”.
She added: “Over the coming months I will visit Canada, China and South America to meet companies interested in arranging tours to the region.”
The current director of Health, Safety, Security and Employment (HSSE) at Oil & Gas UK is set to retire this week.
Robert Paterson will step down from his position after eight years with the industry body after originally joining from the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) offshore division.
Mr Paterson was closely involved with the post-Piper Alpha offshore regulatory framework for health and safety, operational strategy development and direction and in providing legal and enforcement advice and guidance to inspectors.
Mick Borwell will take over responsibility for the position in addition to his role as environment director.