The board of Directors

The Board of Directors is responsible for setting the company's strategy and overseeing its implementation. Its primary responsibilities include approving the financial statements, appointing the chairman and drafting the agenda of the Annual Shareholders Meeting.

 

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement is made up of fourteen Directors, including approximately 82% independent Directors (excluding the two Directors representing employees and the Director representing employee shareholders) and 54.5%1 women, and one non voting member (censeur).

Antoine Frérot (64)

Principal positions held within the company:
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement;
Member of the Veolia Environnement Board of Directors (Initial  appointment: May 7, 2010 - Renewal: June 15, 2022 - Expiration of term: 2026 AGM);
Chairman of the Purpose Committee since April 27, 2023 (member since July 1, 2022) ;
Member of the Nominations Committee since July 1, 2022.
 
Background
Born on June 3, 1958 in Fontainebleau (France), Antoine Frérot is a graduate of the École Polytechnique (class of 1977), engineer at the Ponts et Chaussées corps and holds a doctorate from the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées.
He started his career in 1981 as a research engineer at the Central Research Office for French Overseas Departments and Territories. In 1983, he joined the Center for Study and Research of the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées as a project manager and then served as Assistant Director from 1984 to 1988. 
From 1988 to 1990, he was Head of Financial Transactions at Crédit National. In 1990, Antoine Frérot joined Compagnie Générale des Eaux as a project manager and, in 1995, became Chief Executive Officer of CGEA Transport. 
In 2000, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of CONNEX, the Transport Division of Vivendi Environnement, and a member of the Executive Committee of Vivendi Environnement. In January 2003, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Veolia Eau, the Water Division of Veolia Environnement, and Senior Executive Vice-President of Veolia Environnement. In November 2009, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer, and in December 2010, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Veolia Environnement. On July 1, 2022, following the separation of duties of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, he became the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement.

Estelle Brachlianoff (50)

Principal position held within the company:
Chief Executive Officer of Veolia Environnement ; 
Member of the Veolia Environnement Board of Directors (Initial  appointment: June 15, 2022 - Expiration of term: 2026 AGM)

Background
Born on July 26, 1972, Estelle Brachlianoff is a graduate of the École Polytechnique and the Ponts et Chaussées engineering school. She joined the Val-d’Oise infrastructure department of the Paris metropolitan area in 1998 as head of the major infrastructure department. In 2002, she became advisor to the Prefect of the Ile-de-France region, in charge of transportation and development. She joined Veolia Environmental Services in 2005 as special advisor to the CEO. She became CEO of Veolia Propreté Nettoyage et Multiservices in 2008 and of Veolia Propreté Ile-de-France in 2010. In 2012, she became CEO of Veolia Environmental Services in the UK. She was also a member of the President’s Committee of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) from 2013 to 2018 and was President of the French Chamber of Britain from June 2016 to July 2018. A member of Veolia’s Executive Committee since 2013 and Director of the UK and Ireland zone from 2013 to 2018, Estelle Brachlianoff was Veolia’s deputy CEO from September 1, 2018 to June 30, 2022. Since 2019, Estelle Brachlianoff has been a member of the Supervisory Board of Hermès International and a member of its Audit and Risk Committee and its CAG-CSR Committee. She was appointed as Director of Veolia Environnement on June 15, 2022 and succeeded Antoine Frérot as Chief Executive Officer of the Company from July 1, 2022.

Maryse Aulagnon (73)

Principal position held within the company:
Vice-Chairwoman and Senior Independent Director since December 1, 2017;
Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  May 16, 2012 - Renewal: April 27, 2023 -  Expiration of term: 2027 AGM);
Chairman of the Compensation committee since December 1, 2017 (member since April 20, 2017);
Member of the Nomination Committee since March 25, 2014; 
Member of the Purpose Committee since November 2, 2021.

Principal position held outside the company:
Chairman and CEO of MAB Finances (Finestate).
 
Background
Maryse Aulagnon
was the Founder and Chairman of Affine group, consisting of two property companies listed in Paris and Brussels specializing in commercial real estate. She currently manages MAB-Finances (Finestate), an investment company dedicated to investment in managed residential property (coliving). She holds a Master’s degree in economics and is a graduate of the Institut d’Études Politiques (IEP) and of the École nationale d’administration (ENA). She is an honorary Maître des Requêtes of the Conseil d’État (1975 to 1979). 
After holding various positions at the French Embassy in the United States (1979-1981) and on the staff of several French ministers (Budget and Industry), she joined the Compagnie Générale d’Électricité group (now Alcatel) in 1984 as Director of International Affairs. She then joined Euris as Chief Executive Officer when it was created in 1987. 
She founded the Affine group in 1990. She was a director of Air-France KLM (Chairman of the Audit Committee) from July 2010 to May 2021 and has been Chairman of the Fédération des Sociétés immobilières et foncières (FSIF) since April 2019. Finally, she is active in a number of professional associations (including Fondation Palladio, Club de l’immobilier, Université de la Ville de Demain, etc.) , as well as cultural and university organizations (including Fondation des Sciences-Po, Le Siècle, Groupe d’Acquisition pour l’Art Contemporain (GAAC), etc.).

Olivier Andriès (60)

Principal position held within the company:

Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  April 27, 2023 - Expiration of term: 2027 AGM);
Member of the Accounts and Audit Committee since April 27, 2023;
Member of the Compensation Committee since April 27, 2023.

Principal position held outside the Company:

Chief Executive Officer of Safran.

Background
Olivier Andriès
joined in 1990 the Treasury Department at the French Ministry of Finance, where he worked in the aeronautics and defense sector, then joined the cabinet of the Minister of the Economy and Finance in 1993 as advisor on industrial affairs.
In 1995, he moved to the Lagardère group as Deputy Director of Strategy and in 1998 was named personal advisor to Jean-Luc Lagardère. 
Olivier Andriès joined Airbus in 2000, as Product Policy Director before joining the executive committee in 2005 as Executive Vice President, Strategy and Cooperation.
He joined Safran in 2008 as Executive Vice President in charge of group strategy and development. He was then appointed Executive Vice President, Defense and Security, and became a member of the Safran Executive Board in 2009. 
In 2011, he was appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Safran Helicopter Engines, and in 2015 was named Chief Executive Officer of Safran Aircraft Engines. 

On January 1, 2021, he became Chief Executive Officer of Safran.

Véronique Bédague (59)

Principal position held within the Company:

Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  April 27, 2023 - Expiration of term: 2027 AGM);
Member of the Accounts and Audit Committee since April 27, 2023;

Principal position held outside the Company:

Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer of Nexity. 

Background
Véronique Bédague
currently serves as Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer of Nexity since January 1, 2023 after being Member of the Board and CEO (from May 19, 2021 to December 31, 2022). 
A graduate of Institut d'Études Politiques(IEP) Paris, ESSEC and a former student of École nationale d'administration(ENA), Véronique Bédague joined the Nexity group in 2017 as General Secretary and member of the Executive Committee.

She has been Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer of Nexity lmmobilier d’Entreprise since 2018, Deputy CEO of the Nexity group, in charge of the “Commercial and Local Authorities Clients” division since 2019, then of “Institutional Clients” since 2020. 
She has worked at the Ministry of the Economy and Finance, the International Monetary Fund, and the City of Paris. Before joining Nexity, she was Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister.

Pierre-André de Chalendar (64)

Principal position held within the company:
Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  April 22, 2021 -  Expiration of term:  2024 AGM);
Chairman of the Nominations Committee since April 27, 2023 (member since April 22, 2021); 
Member of the Compensation Committee since April 27, 2023;
Member of the Purpose Committee since November 2, 2021.
 
Principal position held outside the company: 
Chairman of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain.

Background
Pierre-André de Chalendar is a graduate of ESSEC Business School and École Nationale d’Administration. A former civil servant (Inspecteur des Finances), he served as deputy to the Director General for Energy and Raw Materials within the French Ministry of Industry. Mr. Pierre-André de Chalendar joined Compagnie de Saint-Gobain in 1989 as Vice-President, Corporate Planning. He was subsequently Vice-President of Abrasifs Europe (1992-1996) and President of the Abrasifs division (1996- 2000), before being appointed Senior Vice-President of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain in charge of the Building Distribution sector in 2003. Appointed Chief Operating Officer of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain in May 2005 and elected to the Board in June 2006, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer in June 2007 and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer in June 2010. He was appointed Non-Executive Chairman from July 1, 2021. Pierre-André de Chalendar is also a director of BNP Paribas. He has been Joint Chairman of La Fabrique de l’Industrie since July 2017 and Chairman of ESSEC Business School’s Supervisory Board since February 2019.

Isabelle Courville (60)

Principal position held within the Company:

Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment: April 21, 2016 - Renewal:  April  22, 2020 - Expiration of term: 2024 AGM);
Chairman of the Research, Innovation and Sustainable Development Committee since April 22nd, 2021 (member since April 20, 2017);

Member of the Nominations Committee since November 6, 2018;
Member of the Purpose Committee since November 2, 2021.

Principal position held outside the Company:
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Canadian Pacific Railway (Canada).

Background:
Isabelle Courville
graduated in engineering physics from École Polytechnique Montréal and in civil law from McGill University. She was active for 20 years in the Canadian telecommunications industry. She served as President of Bell Canada’s Enterprise group and as President and Chief Executive Officer of Bell Nordiq. From 2006 to 2013, she joined Hydro-Québec where she served as President of Hydro-Québec TransEnergie and then President of Hydro-Québec Distribution. She was Chairman of the Laurentian Bank of Canada from 2013 to April 9, 2019 and was then appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of Canadian Pacific Railway. She also sits on the Board of Directors of SNC Lavalin and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Governance of Private and Public Organizations.

Marion Guillou (68)

Principal position held within the company:
Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment: December 12, 2012 - Renewal:  April  22, 2021 - Expiration of term: 2025 AGM);
Member of the Compensation Committee since November 5, 2014;
Member of the Research, Innovation and Sustainable Development Committee since December 12, 2012.

Principal position held outside the company:
Independent Director.
 
Background
Marion Guillou is a graduate of the École Polytechnique (class of 1973), holds a Ph.D. in Food Sciences, and is a General Engineer in bridges, water and forestry engineering. She is a member of the Academy of Technology and of the French Academy of Agriculture. She headed the Ministry of Agriculture food safety directorate from 1996 to 2000. She led the National Institute of Agronomic Research (INRA) for four years (2000-2004) before being appointed as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (2004-2012), where she helped guide research on agriculture, food, the environment and international openness (2004-2012). She also chaired the French National Consortium for agriculture, food, animal health and the environment (2010-2015) and Agreenium, the French Institute of Agronomics, Veterinary Science and Forestry (2015-2020). Finally, she was a Special State Advisor from June 2017 to 2020.

Franck Le Roux (58)

Principal position held within the company:
Director representing employees of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  October 15, 2018 - Renewal: October 15, 2022 - Expiration of term: October 15, 2026);
Member of the Accounts and Audit Committee since November 6, 2018;
Member of the Compensation Committee since November 6, 2018;
Member of the Purpose Committee since November 2, 2021.

Background
Franck Le Roux
joined the Compagnie Générale des EauxVE as a drinking water network technician on August 31, 1983 for the Syndicat des Eaux d’Île-de-France (SEDIF) contract. He passed the inspector’s examination in June 1986. In 1984, he joined the Confédération Générale du Travail (CGT) and his first term as staff delegate was in 1985. Elected to the Executive Board of the public services CGT Federation and leader of the federal water collective section, he acted as negotiator on the collective agreement for water and sanitation between 1997 and 2009. He has been the central union delegate for the Compagnie Générale des Eaux and then the Veolia Eau economic entity since 1999. He has also been the Veolia Group CGT union representative since its creation (Vivendi Environnement) and negotiated the first agreement with the Group in 2002. He currently works as Social Protection Officer within the Veolia Eau-Compagnie Générale des EauxVE Human Resources Department.

Agata Mazurek-Bąk (46)

Principal position held within the company:
Senior Executive Vice President of Human Resources of Veolia Polska and CEE Zone;
Director representing employee shareholders (Initial appointment:  June 15, 2022 - Expiration of term: 2026 AGM);
Member of the Accounts and Audit Committee since August 2, 2022.

Principal position held outside the company:
Member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement Employee Shareholders’ Association.

Background
Agata Mazurek-Bąk
has a strong background in finance (she holds a Master’s degree in economics and has 5 years experience in audit and consulting, including certification of accounts according to Polish and international accounting standards). She joined the Group in 2005 to set up controlling structures and implement a Shared Services Center for Poland, which she managed for nearly a decade as a General Director. Over the next years, she held various managerial positions in the Group in the area of finance, purchasing or strategic projects in operations. Since 2019 she has been responsible for Human Resources. She has a Green Belt Lean Six Sigma certificate and supervises CSR activity in Poland run by Veolia Foundation. She was appointed as a director of Veolia Environnement on June 15, 2022.

Pavel Páša (58)

Principal position held within the company:
Director representing employees of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  October 15, 2014 -  Renewal: October 15, 2022 - Expiration of term: October 15, 2026);
Member of the Research, Innovation and Sustainable Development Committee since November 5, 2014.

Background
Pavel Páša has been a Veolia employee since 1995. He is the health and safety expert for the Czech company, Veolia Česka Republika a.sVE, a specialist in wastewater treatment.

Nathalie Rachou (65)

Principal position held within the company:
Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  May 16, 2012 - Renewal: April 22, 2020 -  Expiration of term: 2024 AGM);
Chairman of the Accounts and Audit Committee since December 1st, 2017 and member since December 12, 2012; 
Member of the Purpose Committee since November 2, 2021.
 
Principal position held outside the company:
Member of the Board of Directors, the Risk Committee and of the Governance and Nominating  Committee of UBS Group AG.
 
Background
Nathalie Rachou
graduated from the École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC) in 1978 and spent the first part of her career at Banque Indosuez (now Crédit Agricole). After working as a foreign exchange dealer for clients in London and Paris from 1978 to 1982, she was head of Asset and Liability Management and Market Risk Management until 1986, and then set up the bank’s business on MATIF and the bank’s derivatives broking subsidiary. From 1991 to 1996, she was General Counsel for Banque Indosuez, then served from 1996 to 1999 as head of Global Foreign Exchange and Currency Options worldwide. In November 1999, she founded Topiary Finance, a United Kingdom based asset management company, which she led until 2015. She was also, up to 2020, a director of Société Générale from 2008 (Chairman of the Risks Committee and member of the Nominations Committee) and of Altran Technologies from 2012 (Chairman of the Audit Committee and member of the Nominations and Compensation Committee) and Senior Advisor of Rouvier Associés from 2015. She is currently a non-executive director of UBS Group AG.

Francisco Reynès (60)

Principal position held within the Company:

Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment:  April 27, 2023 - Expiration of term: 2027 AGM);
Member of the Research, Innovation and Sustainable Development Committee since April 27, 2023.

Principal position held outside the Company:

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Naturgy Energy Group, SL.

Background
Francisco Reynés
holds a degree in Industrial Engineering and a MBA degree. 
After having worked seven years as Managing Director of Uniland, one of the largest Spanish family-owned cement companies, he started his professional career in the automotive industry where he spent ten years in the Volkswagen Group and after Johnson Controls Automotive. 
Then, he was the Managing Director of Criteria Caixa, leading its IPO in 2007. He served from2009 to 2018 as Vice-Chairman & Chief Executive Officerof Abertis, a worldwide motorways operator. 
In May 2015, he led as Chairman the IPO of Cellnex Telecom, the largest European telecom tower operator, resigning in June 2018 after his appointment in Naturgy Energy Group. 
Currently Chairman & Chief Executive Officer since February 2018. Naturgy is an international spanish utility, listed in spanish Ibex.

Guillaume Texier (49)

Principal position held within the company:

Independent member of the Board of Directors of Veolia Environnement (Initial appointment: April 21, 2016 - Renewal: April 22, 2020 - Expiration of term: 2024 AGM);
Member of the Accounts and Audit Committee since April 18, 2019;
Member of the Research, Innovation and Sustainable Development Committee since April 20, 2017.


Principal position held outside the company: 
Chief Executive Officer and Director of Rexel.

Biography 
Guillaume Texier is a graduate of École Polytechnique and Corps des Mines. He started his career with the French civil service, notably as an Advisor to the Minister of the Environment and the Minister for Industry. He joined the Saint-Gobain group in 2005 as Vice-President of Corporate Planning in Paris and was successively appointed General Manager of gypsum activities in Canada, Vice-President of the roofing materials activity in the US and Vice-President of the ceramic materials activity worldwide. He was Chief Financial Officer of Compagnie de SaintGobain from 2016 to 2018. From January 1, 2019 to September 2021, he was Senior Vice-President, CEO of the France, Southern Europe, Middle East and Africa Region at Saint-Gobain. He is Chief Executive Officer of Rexel since September 1, 2021.

M. Enric Amiguet i Rovira (54)

Principal position held within the company:
Non voting member (censeur) (Initial appointment:  June 15, 2022).

Biography 
Enric Xavier Amiguet i Rovira holds a degree in Public Relations and Protocol from ESERP, a degree in Digital Marketing and a degree in Ecological Marketing, as well as an Executive MBA from EADA. He joined Agbar in September 1995 in the Presidency and Public Relations Office. He worked in the consumer department of Aigües de Barcelona and later in the marketing department, coordinating the different educational websites and ecological marketing topics. In the last eight years, he has been a member of the Suez Board of Directors, member of the CSR, Innovation, Ethics, Water and Sustainable Planet Committee and of the Strategic Committee. He was elected to this position by the Suez European Works Council. He currently supervises the projects of the Agbar Foundation. He was appointed a non-voting member (censeur) of the Veolia Environnement Board of Directors on June 15, 2022, to contribute his experience to the integration of former Suez employees into Veolia.

1  Excluding the Directors representing employees and the Director representing employee shareholders in accordance with Articles L. 225-27-1 and L. 22-10-7 of the French Commercial Code.

THE ROLE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Under its chairman, Antoine Frérot, the Board of Directors is responsible for setting Veolia Environnement's strategy and overseeing its implementation. In compliance with the company's articles of association, key decisions are submitted for its approval.
The management of the Board of Directors is explained in the Universal Registration Document of the company.

SPECIALIZED COMMITTEES ASSIST THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Board of Directors has created specialized committees, which are detailed in the Registration Document of the company.
 

These committees include the following directors:

Accounts and audit committee

  • Nathalie Rachou* (Chairwoman)
  • Olivier Andriès*
  • Véronique Bédague*
  • Franck Le Roux
  • Agata Mazurek-Bąk
  • Guillaume Texier*

*Independent directors

Nominations committee

  • Pierre-André de Chalendar* (Chairman)
  • ​Maryse Aulagnon*
  • Isabelle Courville*
  •  Mr. Antoine Frérot

*Independent directors

Compensation committee

  • Maryse Aulagnon* (Chairwoman)
  • Olivier Andriès*
  • Pierre-André de Chalendar*
  • ​​Marion Guillou*
  • Franck Le Roux

*Independent directors

Research, Innovation and Sustainable Development Committee

  • Isabelle Courville * (Chairwoman)
  • Marion Guillou*
  • ​Pavel Páša
  • Francisco Reynès*
  • Guillaume Texier*
  • Enric Amiguet i Rovira

*Independent directors

Purpose Committee

  • Antoine Frérot (Chairman)
  • Maryse Aulagnon *
  • Pierre-André de Chalendar *
  • Isabelle Courville *
  • Mr. Franck Le Roux
  • Mrs. Nathalie Rachou *

*Independent directors.