TX-WESTLAKE-CORPORATION
Westlake Corporation (NYSE: WLK) (the “Company” or “Westlake”) today announced that Jean-Marc Gilson, who most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation, has been appointed by the Board of Directors to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of Westlake. Jean-Marc Gilson succeeds Albert Chao, who will transition to become Executive Chairman of the Westlake Board of Directors. James Chao, the current Chairman of the Board, will become Senior Chairman of the Westlake Board of Directors. These appointments take effect today.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240715044647/en/
Jean-Marc Gilson, new President and Chief Executive Officer of Westlake Corporation (Photo: Business Wire)
“I am excited to welcome Jean-Marc as the newest addition to Westlake’s management team. Westlake is in a very strong position supported by a world-class team, and, having served as the CEO of Westlake for the last 20 years, now is the right time to implement our succession plan,” said Albert Chao. “Jean-Marc brings 25 years of proven executive experience in the chemicals industry in the United States, Europe and Asia, during which he has led international companies and delivered impressive results. We are confident that Jean-Marc is the right leader to help us build on our track record of delivering market-leading results, disciplined growth and sustained shareholder value creation.”
James Chao said, “This announcement is the culmination of a thoughtful succession planning process by our Board to position Westlake for the future. We are incredibly proud of the Company and culture we have built and believe Jean-Marc will fit in seamlessly as we continue to execute our successful strategy and family culture of long-term value creation to begin Westlake’s next chapter.”
“I am honored and humbled to become the second, and first non-family, CEO of Westlake,” said Jean-Marc Gilson. “I have long admired Westlake as a best-in-class company at the forefront of delivering life-enhancing products through innovation in essential materials and building products. I look forward to working with Albert, James and the entire management team and Board to advance the good work underway as we deliver on our mission to responsibly serve our customers and return enhanced value to our shareholders.”
In connection with today’s announcement, Jean-Marc Gilson will also become President and CEO and a director of Westlake Chemical Partners GP LLC, the general partner of Westlake Chemical Partners LP (NYSE: WLKP), and Albert Chao will become Executive Chairman and James Chao will become Senior Chairman of the Westlake Chemical Partners GP LLC Board of Directors.
About Jean-Marc Gilson
A seasoned leader in the chemical industry with a proven ability to deliver sustained financial performance, Jean-Marc Gilson, 60, most recently served as President and CEO of Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation, an international chemical company based in Japan with more than $30 billion in revenue.
From 2014 to 2020, Jean-Marc Gilson served as Chief Executive Officer of Roquette, a family-owned global leader in plant-based ingredients and a leading provider of pharmaceutical excipients. Before that, Mr. Gilson served as Vice-Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of NuSil Technology, a U.S.-based global manufacturer of medical- and space-grade silicone technology. Earlier in his career, Mr. Gilson held various leadership roles at Dow Corning, including Executive Vice President, Specialty Chemicals Business, before becoming CEO of Avantor Performance Materials.
Jean-Marc Gilson holds a Master of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Liège in Belgium and a Master of Business Administration from the International Institute for Management Development in Switzerland.
About Westlake
Westlake is a global manufacturer and supplier of materials and innovative products that enhance life every day. Headquartered in Houston, with operations in Asia, Europe and North America, we provide the building blocks for vital solutions — from housing and construction, to packaging and healthcare, to automotive and consumer. For more information, visit the company’s web site at www.westlake.com.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240715044647/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
TOURISE Reframes Tourism Sector as Global Powerhouse on a Path to $16 Trillion During Davos24.1.2026 00:22:00 CET | Press release
TOURISE advanced tourism’s role as a vital sector connecting industries, economies, and regions to address shared global challenges at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260123950180/en/ His Excellency Ahmed Al‑Khateeb, Minister of Tourism of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of TOURISE, convenes executives from Trip.com, Visa, TikTok, PayPal, Salesforce, Forbes, Avolta, ByteDance, and more at Davos 2026 Often overlooked as a siloed industry, TOURISE pressed the importance of tourism being recognized as a strategic sector, contributing one in every $10 to global GDP and uplifting every industry it touches. His Excellency Ahmed Al Khateeb, Minister of Tourism of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of TOURISE said alliances and collaboration across sectors will see tourism continue to rise. “Tourism is more than a lifestyle sector, it functions as a strategic economic system. TOURISE
Zycus Named a Leader in the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Source-to-Pay Suites23.1.2026 20:00:00 CET | Press release
This acknowledgment reflects Zycus’ momentum in Agentic AI, comprehensive S2P suite, brand trust and customer outcomes. Zycus, a global provider in Source-to-Pay (S2P) technology, today announced that it has been recognized as a Leaderin the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Source-to-Pay Suites. We believe the report points to Zycus’ continued investment in Merlin Intake to streamline user experience and Agentic AI to support workflows such as tail-spend management via autonomous negotiation. This aligns with Zycus’ “Intake to Outcomes” (I2O) belief: simplify how work enters procurement, orchestrate execution with Agentic AI, and deliver outcomes with the right governance and control. “Being recognized as a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Source-to-Pay Suites reflects our long-term commitment to innovation, customer outcomes, and responsible AI,” said Aatish Dedhia, Founder & CEO of Zycus. “Merlin Agentic AI is designed to move beyond task automation towards end-to-end outcom
Bureau Veritas to Acquire a Leading Sustainability Specialist for Consumer Products in Italy23.1.2026 18:13:00 CET | Press release
Bureau Veritas, a global leader in Testing, Inspection, and Certification services (TIC), announces the acquisition of SPIN360, a leading Italian consulting firm specialized in sustainable innovation and development across primary premium fashion and luxury brands. This acquisition aligns with Bureau Veritas’ LEAP | 28 strategy to create new strongholds in the Consumer Product Services (CPS) industry, and to accelerate its growth in key markets such as Italy. The transaction will deliver on value creation opportunities, by combining SPIN360's proprietary Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tools and data-driven advisory services with Bureau Veritas' certification and supply chain auditing expertise. It will also help position Bureau Veritas as a global center of excellence for premium fashion and luxury. Created in 2009 and based in Milan, SPIN360 provides technical advisory services covering LCA, life cycle costing, environmental product declarations, carbon footprint, supply chain engagement
HCLTech to Acquire Singapore-based Finergic to Boost Digital Transformation Offerings for Wealth Management Industry23.1.2026 17:55:00 CET | Press release
HCLTech, a leading global technology company, today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Finergic Solutions Pte Ltd, a boutique wealth consulting firm headquartered in Singapore. The transaction is expected to close by April 30, 2026. Founded in 2019, Finergic focuses on core banking and wealth management transformation and has a strong, well-established global presence. The addition of Finergic’s niche capabilities, combined with the scale of HCLTech, is expected to unlock stronger synergies and enhance service delivery across the financial services and wealth management industry. HCLTech brings 25+ years of global experience in serving leading financial institutions. By integrating Finergic’s specialized transformation strategy, consulting and wealth-architecture capabilities, HCLTech will accelerate the delivery of next-generation, platform-enabled wealth management solutions anchored by advanced AI-native workflows. These capabilities will complement HCLTe
Saudi Arabia to Host World Economic Forum Global Collaboration and Growth Meeting: Building Common Ground and Reviving Growth on 22-23 April 202623.1.2026 16:29:00 CET | Press release
Saudi Arabia will host the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Collaboration and Growth Meeting: Building Common Ground and Reviving Growth in Jeddah on 22-23 April 2026, it was announced on the closing day of the 56th Annual Meeting of the Forum in Davos, Switzerland. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260123725881/en/ HE Faisal F. Alibrahim, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Economy and Planning, announces that the Kingdom will host the World Economic Forum Global Collaboration and Growth Meeting in Jeddah in April 2026 (Photo: AETOSWire) His Excellency Faisal F. Alibrahim, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Economy and Planning today confirmed the details for the regular high-level WEF meeting, which was announced at the 2025 WEF Annual Meeting. Calling for pragmatism and collaboration against a backdrop of geopolitical fragmentation, HE Alibrahim said “stability can’t be quickly built, and it can’t be bought”. “Stability need
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom
