The Energy Industries Council (EIC) announced that The Right Honourable the Lord Howell of Guildford has been appointed President of the EIC. Lord Howell is a senior member of the House of Lords, and has held ministerial positions for Energy, Transport and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in two Conservative Governments.
Lord Howell joined Parliament in 1966 when he was elected MP for Guildford, and went on to serve as Secretary of State for both Energy (1979-1981) and Transport (1981-1983) in Margaret Thatcher’s Government. More recently he held the position of Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (2010-Sept 2012) in David Cameron’s Cabinet, with special responsibilities for international energy issues.
Between 2002 and 2010, Lord Howell served as Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party in the Lords and Chief Opposition Spokesman in the House of Lords on Foreign Affairs. He joined the House of Lords in 1997 as a life peer with the title Baron Howell of Guildford.
Lord Howell will succeed The Rt. Hon. the Lord Jenkin of Roding, who has held the position since October 2009.
Paul Mitchell, Chairman of the EIC said: “It is a great honour to welcome Lord Howell as President of our organisation. Lord Howell has a wealth of experience in government and industry and will be a real asset in helping the EIC to raise its profile and serve its members in growing their business interests in the UK and overseas.”
Lord Howell, President of the EIC said: “I am honoured to be the new President of the EIC. I believe that the UK supply chain, guided by the EIC, has a uniquely strong role to play in both the major changes in the global energy mix, and in the transformation of our energy industries here at home – at all stages of the supply chain across oil & gas, power and renewables. I stand ready to assist the EIC in any way I can to meet these exciting new challenges.”
Currently, Lord Howell is completing a nine-year term as President of the British Institute of Energy Economists and is Chairman of the Windsor Energy Group, a specialist discussion group which brings together senior figures from the public and private sector. Lord Howell is also Chairman of the Council of Commonwealth Societies.
Lord Howell studied Economics at King’s College, Cambridge, and has enjoyed roles as a journalist and a banker. He is a published author of several books on energy, politics, innovation and the internet, including the bestselling The Edge of Now, (2000) and Out of the Energy Labyrinth (2006).
In 2001, Lord Howell was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure by the Emperor of Japan for his services to Japan-UK relations.
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