Executive chairman of BWX Technologies’ board transitioning to non-executive chairman role

BWX Technologies Inc. (BWXT) said Friday that the executive chairman of its board of directors will transition to a non-executive chairman role, effective May 4.

John A. Fees has served as executive chairman of BWXT since July 2015 when the company spun off its power generation business to focus on government and commercial nuclear markets.

He served as chairman of the company from 2010 to 2015, following its spin-off from McDermott International, Inc., an engineering and construction company with a focus on energy. He was chief executive officer of McDermott from October 2008 until July 2010, at which time he retired from the company after 31 years of service.

“Our confidence in our CEO, Rex Geveden, our organization development and succession planning by the Board have put the company in the position to operate with a more traditional structure with a Non-Executive Chairman,” Robert W. Goldman, the board’s lead independent director, said in a statement. “John, who led the Board through these matters, has agreed to assume the role of Non-Executive Chairman so that we can continue to benefit from his judgment and experience.”

Fees has served on the Boards of the National Association of Manufacturers, Nuclear Energy Institute, and the National Petroleum Council. He also is a member of the Board of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, a global infrastructure investment and development company.