Saudi dairy company Almarai’s CEO resigns

Saudi dairy company Almarai has re-appointed its former CEO Georges P Schorderet to replace Alois Hofbauer, who has resigned, it announced in a bourse statement on Sunday.

Hofbauer, who replaced Schorderet and took on the role of CEO earlier this year, resigned due to “personal reasons” with immediate effect, the statement said.

Schorderet, who had been with Almarai for 15 years and served as the CEO from February 2015 until April 1, had decided to retire this year and was serving as an advisor to the board.

Read: Saudi dairy firm Almarai says CEO to retire

Almarai also said that its board had appointed its CFO Majed Mazen Rasheed Nofal as the deputy CEO. Nofal, who has worked with the company for 12 years, previously worked with Western Bakeries (L’usine) and Ernst & Young.

The company also announced that it had appointed Paul Gay as the new chief financial officer.

“The board believes that these changes in Almarai leadership executive management positions will ensure the continuity while paving the way for its future strategy,” the company said in the statement.

Almarai also announced that its net profit for the second quarter fell by 11.9 per cent to SAR582.5m ($155.46m), down from SAR661.41m in same period last year.

The company had said in May that its board had approved its five-year business plan with SAR7.1bn in capital investments.

“Given the persistent challenging economic conditions across the region, the focus on efficiency and cost optimisation measures will continue throughout the plan period to ensure continuous competitive advantage,” Almarai said in a statement.

The plan “in line with the long-term investment cycle of the company calling for less expansionary investments and a focus towards more efficiency and sustainability”, it said.

Read: Saudi’s Almarai plans $2.8bn expansion