The Edson Queiroz Group (GEQ) announced on Monday (26) that Abelardo Rocha will step down as executive president of the business conglomerate, handing over the position to Carlos Henrique Stella Rotella, former executive of Votorantim Siderurgia. Abelardo Rocha’s departure marks the completion of the family transition process to a fully external executive management, a process led by Abelardo himself and by the chairman of the group’s board of directors, Igor Queiroz Barroso. Abelardo Rocha and Carlos Rotella will begin the administrative transition on November 3, and the process will be completed in January 2021, when Rotella will definitively assume the role.
In just over 4 years at the helm of the Edson Queiroz Group, Abelardo Rocha was responsible for the acquisitions of Nestlé Waters’ mineral water division in 2018 and for the bid to acquire part of Liquigás, alongside a group of bidders, which awaits final approval from the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE). In 2019, under his leadership, the Edson Queiroz Group had its best result in the last 20 years.
“We believe that the Edson Queiroz Group has great relevance in the national economic context. After the passing of our founder, Yolanda Queiroz, and former president Airton Queiroz, we made the effort to maintain the legacy in an ethical manner, implementing a high-performance management that now culminates in a smooth and secure transition for the company. I am pleased with the work done and with the knowledge that the mission has been accomplished,” concludes Abelardo Rocha.
The new president of the Edson Queiroz Group is 56 years old, an engineer, and has over 30 years of experience in large national and multinational companies. His last position was CEO of Votorantim Siderurgia, responsible for operations in Latin America, with plants in Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia.