HOUSTON, Aug. 17, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Penn Virginia Corporation (NASDAQ:PVAC) today announced the concurrent retirement of John A. Brooks and appointment of Darrin J. Henke as President, Chief Executive Officer and Director of the Company, effective immediately.
“The Board is thankful for John’s years of service and leadership. He steadied us during a challenging period in the industry,” said Darin G. Holderness, Chairman of the Board of Directors. “Under his leadership, Penn Virginia implemented significantly improved drilling and completions operations and positioned us well for the future. He has been a tremendous asset to Penn Virginia, and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
Mr. Holderness continued, “We are very pleased to have Darrin joining Penn Virginia as President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director. Darrin brings a wealth of experience and is a proven oil and gas leader with broad technical and commercial experience across multiple basins, including the Eagle Ford. I am confident that Darrin and the rest of the team will continue to lead the Company to future success with our priorities unchanged—generating free cash flow, cash on cash returns, and protecting our strong balance sheet.”
Prior to joining Penn Virginia, Mr. Henke served nearly five years as the Chief Executive Officer of Gary Petroleum Partners and Gary Permian LLC, a private oil and gas acquisition and development company. He was previously employed by Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. for eleven years, most recently as Vice President & General Manager for Southern Operations overseeing, among others, Encana’s entrance into the Eagle Ford and Permian Basins. With thirty years of experience in the oil and gas business, Mr. Henke was also employed by Tom Brown Inc., Venoco Inc. and Burlington Resources. Mr. Henke graduated summa cum laude with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Texas Tech University and also completed Duke’s Advanced Management Program. He was the recipient of the Denver Business Journal’s 2013 Power Book Award for outstanding business leadership, currently sits on the board of Colorado’s State Chamber of Commerce, and is a registered Professional Petroleum Engineer.
On August 17, 2020, each of the Compensation and Benefits Committee and the Board of Directors of Penn Virginia approved the issuance to Mr. Henke of an initial inducement equity compensation award of 115,000 restricted stock units, comprised of 50% time-based restricted stock units (“RSUs”) and 50% performance-based restricted stock units (“PSUs”). The RSUs vest over three years from Mr. Henke’s date of hire, and the PSUs vest according to the Company’s achievement of certain performance factors based on a 2021-2023 performance period, subject in each case to Mr. Henke’s continued employment through the applicable vesting date. Such inducement award will be in lieu of any equity grant to Mr. Henke for fiscal 2021, and there are no additional awards being granted at this time.
The RSUs and the PSUs are being granted as an inducement to Mr. Henke entering into employment with the Company in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). Pursuant to the requirements of such rule, Penn Virginia is including the above disclosures in this press release.
About Penn Virginia Corporation
Penn Virginia Corporation is a pure-play independent oil and gas company engaged in the development and production of oil, NGLs, and natural gas, with operations in the Eagle Ford shale in south Texas. For more information, please visit our website at www.pennvirginia.com. The information on the Company’s website is not part of this release.
