U.K. Names Former Banker to Head Energy Department

The U.K. appointed Stephen Lovegrove, a former head of Deutsche Bank AG’s European media team, as permanent secretary, or the top official, at the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

Lovegrove is currently chief executive officer of the Shareholder Executive, which helps manage government stakes in businesses it owns or part-owns, and will take up his post on Feb. 4, the Energy Department said today in a statement.

Lovegrove joined the Shareholder Executive in 2004, and became CEO in 2007. Prior to that, he spent a decade at Deutsche Bank, according to the statement. He’s replacing Moira Wallace, who announced her decision to step down in July, as the department clashed with the Treasury over subsidies for renewable power.

“Stephen’s proven commercial experience will be an invaluable addition to the Department’s capability,” Energy Secretary Ed Davey said in the statement. “We need to attract billions in private sector investment to build new power stations and to upgrade the energy efficiency of the nation’s homes.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Reed Landberg at landberg@bloomberg.net