Brenntag announced that CEO Jens Birgersson will take direct leadership of the Brenntag Essentials division following the departure of Ewout van Jarwaarde from the Board of Management and his role as CEO of Brenntag Essentials, effective September 8.

Birgersson has called on teams to focus on operational growth and efficiencies while he familiarizes himself with the organization. The company remains committed to advancing both its Specialties and Essentials divisions.

Van Jarwaarde joined the Board in 2021 as Chief Transformation Officer and played a central role in implementing Brenntag’s divisional operating model, the DiDEX transformation program, and its digital and AI initiatives. He was appointed CEO of Essentials in 2023, where he advanced the Triple Strategy, M&A activity, and key customer and supplier partnerships.

Richard Ridinger, chairman of the Supervisory Board, thanked van Jarwaarde for his contributions: “Ewout ensured consistent execution of the Group strategy and operational performance in a challenging market environment.”

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