Exxon Mobil Chief to Delay Retirement

Exxon Mobil Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Lee R. Raymond agreed to delay his retirement beyond the scheduled date of August 2003 while potential successors are groomed, the company said.

The company also named two new senior vice presidents and said it will consider other potential successors to Raymond in the next two years.

The moves were announced after a regularly scheduled meeting of the company’s directors.

Raymond, 62, joined Exxon in 1963 and joined the board in 1984. He became chairman and chief executive in 1993.

Raymond guided Exxon through the 1999 merger with Mobil that created the world’s largest investor-owned oil company. Exxon Mobil has undergone a major restructuring to bring together the two old rivals.

Exxon Mobil shares rose $1.16 to close at $42.13 on the New York Stock Exchange.