Stacey Cartwright has been appointed the chair of newly formed Ovo Energy Board, which will oversee strategy for the UK retail business following Ovo’s deal to acquire SSE Energy, which completed at the start of this year.
The Ovo Energy Board will sit in addition to the existing Ovo group board, which Stephen Murphy remains chair of.
Cartwright, who will assume the role in June, was formerly the deputy chair of Harvey Nichols, chief financial officer and executive vice president at Burberry Group and also had roles at Savills, The Football Association, Genpact and AerCap.
Meanwhile at the country’s largest water company, Sian Leydon has joined Thames as director of water network transformation to implement a new water network operating model. Leydon, who previously worked as executive director at Sydney Water, has taken over from Tess Fayers.
Elsewhere in water, David Black’s role at Ofwat has changed: after leading the regulator through PR19 as senior director of water 2020, Black is now chief regulation officer. Black will lead the co-ordination of Ofwat’s regulatory policy and approach, which Ofwat said will allow chief executive Rachel Fletcher to concentrate on external engagement and strategic leadership of the organisation.
Anthony Ferrar has been named as the new chairman of Water UK, replacing Brian Bender who had held the role since 2015. Ferrar retired from SES Water in February this year after 11 years as managing director.
Ferrar said: “This is a crucial time to be joining Water UK. The water industry is playing a key role in the Covid-19 crisis, keeping our water flowing and supporting any customers who find themselves in financial difficulty.”
Electricity North West has also beefed up its leadership team with a newly created directorship. Rachel Parr has been promoted from head of human resources to human resources director.
As well as carrying out her existing duties, Parr will sit on the company’s executive leadership team.
Chief executive Peter Emery said the appointment strengthened the senior team at a critical time for the business as it works to keep power flowing and staff safe during the coronavirus situation.