Briton to be number two in Commission’s energy department

Commission appoints a deputy director-general and seven directors at its last meeting before the summer break.

The last meeting of the college of European commissioners before the summer break approved several appointments to senior posts in European Commission departments.

Christopher Jones is to be a deputy director-general for energy from 1 November, with responsibility for the directorates handling energy policy, the internal energy market, and renewables. For the duration of the current Commission mandate, Jones has been head of the private office of Andris Piebalgs, the European commissioner for development aid. From 2004-08, he was deputy head of Piebalg’s private office while the Latvian was the commissioner for energy. Then he spent just over a year as a director in the energy department. He joined the Commission in 1985 and worked initially in the competition department.

The appointment of Jones, following on from the recent appointment of Dominique Ristori as director-general for energy, means the department will be headed by a Frenchman with a Briton at number two, alongside a Greek, Gerrasimos Thomas, whose appointment as the other deputy director-general, with responsibility for nuclear energy, was announced two weeks ago. Jean-Claude Juncker, the new president of the European Commission will be lobbied by both Germany and possibly Poland to nominate one of their nationals as commissioner for energy. Germany has re-nominated Gunther Oettinger, who is the current European commissioner for energy, for a second term in the Commission.

The college made four appointments of directors in the Commission’s department for development co-operation.

Koen Doens, who is currently the head of the Commission’s spokespersons’ service, has been appointed director for human and society development, replacing Luis Riera, who is scheduled to retire at the end of November. Doens, who is a Belgian diplomat, was head of the private office of Louis Michel, then commissioner for development, in 2007-09 and continued in the same function for another year when Karel De Gucht took over as Belgium’s European commissioner. Doens also worked for Michel when the latter was Belgium’s foreign minister.

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Sarah Cliffe, who is British, has been appointed director for east and southern Africa and co-ordination with the ACP countries. She is currently assistant secretary-general of civilian capacities at the United Nations and previously worked at the World Bank, where she was a director, and the UN Development Programme. She has extensive field experience from Timor-Leste, Rwanda and elsewhere. She replaces Francesca Mosca, who retired in April.

Pierre Amilhat, currently director for west and central Africa, is switching to be director for Asia, Central Asia, Middle East/Gulf and Pacific, replacing Dirk Meganck, who is to retire in October. Amilhat, a Frenchman, has been in the Commission since 1982, and has worked on Asian affairs for almost a decade.

Amilhat’s successor as director for west and central Africa is to be Carla Montesi, currently a director in the directorate-general t for maritime affairs and fisheries (DG MARE). She has worked most of her Commission career in the development department and its predecessors, becoming a head of unit, before going to DG MARE as a director.

Anthony Whelan, an Irish national, has been made director for electronic communications, networks and services in the department for communications networks, content and technology, with effect from 1 August. Whelan was formerly head of the private office of Neelie Kroes, the European commissioner for the digital agenda, and was then transferred into the department. He has been acting in the director’s post since March 2013.

The Commission has appointed Marc Mouligneau as director of the Office for Infrastructure and Logistics in Brussels (OIB), a position he has held in acting capacity since September 2012. A Belgian, he is currently head of the department for real estate in the OIB and was an IT consultant before joining the Commission. His appointment takes effect on 1 August.

The college of commissioners also appointed two directors in Eurostat, the Commission’s statistics office, to take effect from 1 August. Silke Stapel-Weber has been appointed director for national accounts, prices and key indicators. A German, Stapel-Weber holds a doctoral degree in economics and is currently head of unit for national and regional accounts production at Eurostat. She has worked for the Commission since 1994, when she joined as a national expert.

Gallo Gueye, a French national, has been appointed director for social statistics at Eurostat, which he joined in 1995. Gueye is currently head of unit for national accounts methodology, sector accounts, and financial indicators.