FINDLAY, Ohio -- Thomas J. Usher, chairman of Marathon Petroleum Corp., will retire following the company's annual meeting of shareholders on April 27, 2016. MPC's board has elected Gary R. Heminger, the company's president and CEO, to succeed Usher as chairman in addition to his current duties.
"Tom has been an invaluable contributor to our company's success, providing outstanding leadership and keen vision at pivotal times in our company's long history that have helped put us on a path for long-term success," Heminger said. "We remain ever grateful for his guidance and commitment."
Usher, 73, joined U.S. Steel Corp. in 1965, and held various positions in engineering and management. He was elected president of U. S. Steel and to the USX board in 1991 and president and CEO of USX in 1994 and elected chairman and CEO of USX in 1995. From 1986 to late 2001, USX was the parent company of U.S. Steel and Marathon Oil Co. Usher was the architect of the separation of Marathon Oil and U.S. Steel at the end of 2001, and in 2011, coordinated MPC's spinoff from Marathon Oil. He has been a member of the board of directors of MPC and its former affiliates since 1991 and has served as chairman for more than 10 years.
Heminger, 62, joined Marathon in 1975. Throughout four decades with the company he has worked in a variety of groups and functions, including auditing, marketing and commercial roles, and in Marathon's pipeline subsidiary. He held several executive positions in Marathon's downstream business, and was appointed president of Marathon Petroleum Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Marathon, in 2001. In addition, he served as an executive vice president of Marathon Oil and as a member of Marathon Oil's executive committee. He was named to his current position on July 1, 2011. He is also chairman of the board and chief executive officer of MPLX GP LLC.
The board also announced that David A. Daberko has been elected to the new position of lead director. As lead director, Daberko will chair meetings of the non-management directors, approve board meeting agendas and serve as a liaison. These transitions are a part of the board's comprehensive succession planning process.
Daberko, 70, who served as chairman and CEO of National City Corp. for 12 years, joined the MPC board in 2011. He also serves as an MPLX director.
Findlay, Ohio-based MPC is the nation's fourth-largest refiner with seven refineries and an oil and gas pipeline systems. It owns the general partner of MPLX LP, a midstream master limited partnership. MPC's fully integrated system provides operational flexibility to move oil and other products through the company's distribution network and midstream service businesses in the Midwest, Northeast, Southeast and Gulf Coast.
Marathon-brand gasoline is sold through approximately 5,600 independently owned gas stations across 19 states. Enon, Ohio-based Speedway LLC, an MPC subsidiary, owns and operates the nation's second-largest convenience-store chain, with approximately 2,760 convenience stores in 22 states.
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