Clariant CFO Leaves for Shipping Giant AP Moller-Maersk

(Bloomberg) -- Clariant AG announced Patrick Jany has quit as chief financial officer, a role he’s held for 14 years, working alongside Chairman Hariolf Kottmann to overhaul the Swiss chemical maker.

Jany, who will take up the CFO position at AP Moller-Maersk A/S, will be replaced by Stephan Lynen, a company veteran currently head of Clariant’s additives unit, the Muttenz-based firm said on Wednesday.

The switch comes at a crucial time for Kottmann, with the maker of catalysts and surfactants in a state of flux, divesting assets and navigating an increasingly strained relationship with its anchor investor, Saudi Basic Industries Corp.

The Saudi state-owned company acquired its stake from an activist investor last year, a move that was supposed to end a tumultuous period during which Kottmann fought against a breakup.

However, Sabic’s choice of CEO, Ernesto Occhiello, quit after just a few months on the job. Other key executives have also departed.

Kottmann filled in ad interim, having held been CEO for a decade.

All that has put Clariant’s future as an independent company in doubt, Baader Bank analyst Markus Mayer has said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Noël in London at anoel@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net, Catherine Bosley, Crystal Chui

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