“Congratulations on your achievements – thanks for all you’ve done – you’ve been an inspirational manager.”

Normally hard-nosed energy equity analysts sounded more like fully paid-up members of the Henrik Poulsen fan club as they poured out the plaudits during a conference call with the Orsted boss, hours after he announced his decision to step down as CEO of the global offshore wind pioneer by next February at the latest.

Who could blame them? Investors have been among those to benefit from Poulsen’s eight-year tenure as Orsted chief, with the company’s share price ballooning from DKr267 at the end of 2017 – the year it officially transformed from Dong Energy – to DKr752 by close of trading on Monday.

The Orsted share price slipped by around 2% in early trading in Copenhagen on Tuesday, confirming that valuable investor perception of Poulsen – and underlining the critical decision his Danish employer faces in picking a replacement for what will be a tough act to follow.

Leader of a green transformation

Helping to prove that offshore wind, and renewable energy more generally, can be good business as well as good for the planet is surely one of the biggest achievements of Poulsen’s tenure at the top of Orsted.

Poulsen was not the original architect of plans to add offshore wind to the oil and gas business of the former Dong Energy – the bones of that were already in place when he joined from telecoms group TDC in 2012, taking the reins at the Danish government-controlled energy group after the controversy-ridden departure of its previous CEO.

But it was Poulsen who steered Dong’s evolution as it attracted backers of the likes of Goldman Sachs and staged an independent public offering (IPO), confirming Orsted as a solid, investable champion of an industry that was still very much in its growth phase.

Poulsen also oversaw Dong’s divestment of its oil & gas assets, and large-scale forays into the UK’s world-leading offshore wind sector – laying the foundation for an Orsted global offshore business that now includes the US and key Asian markets and will see it have 15GW in the water by 2025.

Poulsen’s decision to quit just as Orsted looks set for its most exciting growth phase yet inevitably led to questions – but he insisted the motive was rooted in a personal desire for new challenges rather than some hidden issue with the Danish group.

If I wanted to go and do something else, now was a good time.

“I admire CEOs who can stay on for 25 years in the same role. Unfortunately, I’m not one of them,” said Poulsen.

“I decided that if I wanted to go and do something else, now was a good time to do so.”

He also stressed that his departure was not connected with Covid-19-lockdown-related soul-seaching. “It’s not like I’ve been going through some big existential event here.”

Beyond taking a seat on Orsted’s board – which should, he insists, quosh any speculation he’ll be joining one of its rivals – Poulsen says he has no firm plans, but as the CEO behind what was this year crowned “the world’s most sustainable business”, and still a relatively youthful 52, he won’t be short of opportunities to keep making an impact in the energy transition.

Key appointment

For Orsted the need to manage a CEO transition – even with a seven-month cushion period – is a high-stakes game.

The company has an internal talent pool of senior executives steeped in the offshore wind sector, but Orsted is becoming much more than just turbines at sea.

The Danish group is building a presence beyond offshore, and wants to have 30GW of overall renewables installed capacity by 2030 as it increasingly invests in onshore wind and PV, with energy storage and – perhaps most significant of all – green hydrogen set to play much larger parts in its business.

Chairman Thomas Thune Andersen said the company’s board would look at internal and external candidates, with a global hunt that reflects the group’s “journey as a diverse renewable energy major” and an ambition to wrap up the appointment as soon as possible before the February 2021 latest end-date for Poulsen’s departure.

Whoever that successor is, Poulsen has some advice. “This company has a very strong soul, and a very deep passion for what it does. That’s a competitive advantage.

“I would look after the soul of the company.”

Transition

'Thanks for everything Henrik' – analyst love-in shows Poulsen a tough act to follow for Orsted