Keppel Corp chairman Lee Boon Yang to retire on April 23

KEPPEL Corporation on Wednesday announced that Lee Boon Yang, 73, will retire as its non-executive chairman and director with effect from April 23, 2021, after the group's upcoming annual general meeting on the same date.

He remains chairman of Singapore Press Holdings, which publishes The Business Times.

Dr Lee will be succeeded as non-executive chairman on April 23 by Danny Teoh, 65, who chairs Keppel Corp’s audit committee and is a member of the remuneration and board risk committees. Mr Teoh is also chairman of M1 Limited.

As chairman of Keppel Corp since July 2009, Dr Lee oversaw the group's board in an international business environment that included the sharp downturn in the offshore and marine sector from 2015, and more recently, the Covid-19 pandemic.

In its announcement, the group said Keppel underwent significant transformation under his watch, as it readied itself for the future, including the May 2020 unveiling of Keppel's Vision 2030, a long-term strategy to guide the company's growth as an integrated company providing solutions for sustainable urbanisation, with sustainability at the core of its strategy.

It was during Dr Lee's tenure that Keppel launched its philanthropic arm, Keppel Care Foundation, in 2012. Since then, the foundation has disbursed more than S$47 million in support of education and the arts, environmental conservation and caring for the underprivileged, among other causes.

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The group also committed more than S$5 million last year to support efforts by Singapore and the international community against the Covid-19 pandemic.

"I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have worked with the many outstanding board members and dedicated Keppelites to build on the Keppel story. We enjoyed many years of great success but also suffered some setbacks. Inspired by a deeply embedded can-do spirit, Keppel has always emerged stronger and fitter from adversity," said Dr Lee.

"I am confident that Danny, with his sharp business acumen and deep expertise in governance, finance and risk management, will provide effective leadership to the board and management as the group continues its growth and transformation."

Mr Teoh was first appointed to Keppel Corp's board in October 2010. Prior to joining Keppel Corp, he spent 27 years in KPMG LLP, Singapore, during which he held various leadership positions in the firm, including as managing partner from 2005 until his retirement in September 2010.

He qualified as a chartered accountant in the UK in 1981 and is an associate member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales.

Phillip Securities analyst Terence Chua sees the impending leadership change as a necessary move to steer Keppel Corp's Vision 2030 initiative, which he believes will be the group's most major revamp since its establishment. 

“Vision 2030 represents a transformational effort that will move the entire group towards a whole new business model. Keppel Corp will definitely need new leadership to oversee the projects to come under this initiative, which spans over a 10-year period,” he told The Business Times in a call on Wednesday.  

Mr Chua also said that the group’s legacy offshore and marine (O&M) business will “almost no longer be a key feature in the new Keppel Group” from here on.

Instead, he said, incoming chairman Mr Teoh will likely lead the group to focus on areas such as new living, working and retailing solutions as outlined in its 10-year roadmap.