Ensco CEO Calls It Quits

Ensco plc announced yesterday that Chairman, President and CEO Dan Rabun has decided to retire after nearly eight years of service.  Rabun will continue to serve in his current role as Chairman, President and CEO until the Board of Directors has completed the succession process and a new CEO has been appointed.

To assist with the new CEO’s transition,  Rabun will remain Chairman through at least the 2014 Annual General Meeting.

Rabun’s planned retirement from the CEO role has been part of the Board’s succession planning process for more than a year. A special committee chaired by Paul Rowsey, the Board’s Lead Director, is directing the succession process. This committee has been working with Heidrick & Struggles International Inc., a leading executive recruiting firm, and is considering both external and internal candidates.

“Dan has made many contributions to the success of our Company – especially his unwavering passion to further advance safety and operational excellence,” said Rowsey. “Over the past eight years revenue and stockholders’ equity have more than quadrupled, dividends have grown from $0.10 to $3.00 per share annually and we are now among the largest and most well-respected offshore drillers.”

Rowsey concluded, “We are grateful that Dan will facilitate a smooth transition as we complete the succession process.”

Rabun commented, “I have truly enjoyed leading Ensco over the past eight years. We have a highly-talented management team and exceptionally dedicated employees who have made our many achievements possible. In particular, I am especially proud that we have taken our safety performance to an even higher level. Our new CEO will benefit, as I have, from our employees’ commitment to go beyond expectations in everything they do.”

Daniel W. Rabun joined Ensco in March 2006 as President and as a member of the Board of Directors.  Rabun was appointed to serve as our Chief Executive Officer effective January 1, 2007 and elected Chairman of the Board of Directors in May 2007. Prior to joining Ensco, Rabun was a partner at the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie LLP where he had practiced law since 1986, except for one year when he served as Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of a company in Dallas, Texas. Rabun provided legal advice and counsel to us for over fifteen years before joining Ensco and served as one of our directors during 2001. He has been a Certified Public Accountant since 1976 and a member of the Texas Bar since 1983. Rabun holds a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Accounting from the University of Houston and a Juris Doctorate Degree from Southern Methodist University. He served as Chairman of the International Association of Drilling Contractors in 2012.

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November 14, 2013