Meridian CEO Binns to stand down this year

Meridian CEO Binns to stand down this year after steering firm from SOE to NZX heavyweight

By Jonathan Underhill

June 22 (BusinessDesk) - Meridian Energy chief executive Mark Binns will step down at the end of the year, having joined from Fletcher Building almost six years ago and steered the power company from state-owned enterprise to NZX heavyweight.

Binns will leave on Dec. 21 and Meridian's board plans to meet shortly to consider the process for hiring his replacement. No reason was given for his departure. He had been Fletcher's original Christchurch rebuild czar before being tapped for Meridian's top job.

The government attracted some 62,000 New Zealanders to the selldown of 49 percent of Meridian at $1.50 a share, the bottom of the indicative range of $1.50 to $1.80, with the stock sold via installment receipts. They last traded at $2.985, a gain of 99 percent, giving the company a market capitalisation of $7.65 billion.

"Meridian has performed exceptionally well since listing,” Chris Moller said in a statement. Binns had done an "excellent" in "leading Meridian through this transformative period."

In February, the company posted a 6 percent gain in first-half operating earnings while lifting its interim dividend by 4.5 percent to 5.33 cents a share.

(BusinessDesk)

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