Desmond (Des) King is president of Chevron Technology Ventures (CTV), a division of Chevron that champions innovation, commercialisation and integration of emerging technologies and related new business models within the corporation.
Chevron Technology Ventures’ business units include biofuels, emerging energy, venture capital and hydrogen. He assumed his current position in August 2009.
A native of the United Kingdom, Mr King received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London, in 1976 and a doctorate degree in chemical engineering from the University of Cambridge in 1979. After receiving his doctorate, he became a professor of chemical engineering at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Mr King joined Chevron in 1981 as a process engineer and progressed through a series of technical positions in Chevron Research Company. In 1994, he became the technical and maintenance manager at Chevron’s refinery in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, before being seconded to Edmonton as general manager of Alberta Envirofuels.
He returned to the United States in 1999 as managing director of technology marketing for Chevron Downstream. He then was named general manager of Corporate Strategic Planning from 2001 to 2004, followed by an assignment as general manager of Chevron’s refinery in Pembroke, Wales. For three years prior to joining CTV, Mr King served as managing director and CEO of Caltex Australia, the leading oil refiner, fuel marketer and convenience store operator in Australia.
He was elected the deputy president of the Institution of Chemical Engineers for 2009-2010 and he will become its president for 2010-2011. In addition to being a global professional body for chemical engineers, the Institution also accredits chemical engineering department curricula in a number of countries including emerging countries such as India and China.
