South Korean oil refiner S-Oil appointed Hussain A. Al-Qahtani as new CEO during its general shareholders meeting, the firm said Thursday.

Before joining the firm, Al-Qahtani, 52, served as president and CEO of Saudi Aramco Shell Refinery Company from 2016. 

Throughout his 29-year career at Saudi Aramco, Al-Qahtani has assumed key roles in production, engineering and projects building expertise and leadership skills, according to the firm.

The new Saudi Arabian CEO majored in chemical engineering at King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals and attended the executive program at IMD Business School in Switzerland.

“He is best suited to drive high performance and strategic growth of S-Oil at a time when the company is penetrating deeper into petrochemical business and preparing for the new age of energy conversion” said an S-Oil spokesperson. 

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)