Elevance names new chief executive officer

Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc., which creates novel, high-performing specialty chemicals from renewable feedstocks, announced that Karl Schoene will succeed Tony Parnell as Elevance’s chief executive officer, effective May 1.

“Karl is the right person to take Elevance to even greater success,” said Parnell. “He’s a proven leader with a history of producing strong results and developing effective teams along the way. As a former CEO for two other high-growth companies and with more than 25 years in the specialty chemical industry and related fields, he’s the right CEO for Elevance at this time in our development.”

The announcement is guided by a management succession and transition plan established by the Elevance board of directors
in 2016.

As CEO, Schoene’s initial priorities will be to continue the strong sales growth of 2016 and the introduction of innovative
commercial products. He takes the reins as the company runs its 180,000 metric tonne (MT) world-scale joint venture biorefinery with Wilmar International Limited, Asia’s leading agribusiness, at significantly increased rates to meet growing demand. Located in Gresik, Indonesia, the commercial-scale manufacturing facility is based on Elevance’s proprietary metathesis technology and produces novel specialty chemicals.

“I’m pleased to be leading Elevance during this exciting time for our company,” Schoene said. “Under Tony’s leadership, the
company has seen strong sales growth and I’m looking forward to working with him, the board of directors, our leadership team and our employees to continue the positive momentum.”

Schoene has served as president and chief technology officer of Elevance since August 2016. He has been instrumental in unifying the technical and business development activities across the company.

Prior to joining Elevance, Schoene was president and CEO of Accutest Laboratories, a network of labs and service centers across the United States. In that role, he led nearly 700 employees through a major performance turnaround and M&A process, culminating in a sale to SGS, where he continued to lead the acquired business through a successful post-M&A integration.

Previously he served as CEO of InEnTec, and prior to that, held several positions at AkzoNobel, Crompton/Witco, Amoco, Albemarle and Ethyl Corporation.

Schoene earned both his B.S. and Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of Virginia.

Parnell will remain on the board and assume the new role of executive chairman.