Citgo Petroleum Corp. on Tuesday announced the appointment of Jack Lynch as the company’s new chief ethics and compliance officer.
Lynch will assume the title in addition to his current role as vice president of legal and government affairs, which he has held since October 2019. He will report directly to Chief Executive Officer Carlos Jordá in addition to having reporting access to the audit committee of the board of directors.
Lynch’s appointment comes amid an internal probe into allegations of misconduct under prior management at Citgo. According to the announcement, Lynch was named to take over compliance following a board review of the company’s compliance systems; he is expected to continue the implementation of any board-recommended enhancements to the compliance department.
“Citgo’s operational success is only possible with a world-class compliance program, designed and implemented to hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards,” said Jordá in a news release. “Jack’s leadership and substantial expertise in compliance and ethics is key in continuing our work to hold Citgo and all of its employees to the highest ethical standards.”
Jordá was named CEO at Citgo in August 2019 following a “thorough and extensive search process” by the company’s board, which itself was reorganized in February 2019, the same month the company cut ties with its parent—Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA—to meet U.S. sanctions. The new board has also engaged outside firms to conduct a review of the company’s regulatory compliance system and a comprehensive audit.
“As a Board, we have made strong corporate governance a critical cornerstone of our mandate,” said Citgo Petroleum Corp. Board Chairwoman Luisa Palacios in the release. “The company is committed to meeting and enhancing compliance and controls and we have already taken remedial action to make sure those standards are met.
“Jack’s knowledge of the complex compliance landscape, in addition to his impressive track record, is a tremendous benefit to the company’s operations and employees.”
Lynch previously served 18 years in various roles at British Petroleum, including as the global compliance and ethics officer. In his new role at Citgo, he will oversee all facets of the company’s existing compliance and ethics program and will be responsible for conducting risk assessments, monitoring and reporting compliance performance, promoting a culture of compliance and ethics, and the program’s training.
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