Catherine MacGregor
"Transition is not degrowth. On the contrary, it represents a new form of growth - more inclusive, more shared, more responsible!"
— Catherine MacGregor[3]
Overview
Catherine MacGregor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1972 (age 52–53) Salé, Morocco |
| Citizenship | France |
| Education | Diplôme d'ingénieur |
| Alma mater | École Centrale Paris (now CentraleSupélec) |
| Occupation(s) | Engineer, business executive |
| Employer | Engie |
| Known for | Leadership of Engie during the European energy crisis; advocacy of the energy transition |
| Title | Chief executive officer of Engie |
| Term | 1 January 2021 – present |
| Predecessor | Isabelle Kocher |
| Board member of | Microsoft (independent director) |
| Spouse | Scottish husband (divorced) |
| Children | 2 daughters |
| Awards | Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur (2020) |
| Website | Profile at Engie.com |
🌍 Catherine MacGregor (born 1972) is a French engineer and business executive who has served as chief executive officer (CEO) of Engie since 2021. She previously spent more than two decades at Schlumberger and later led Technip Energies, before being appointed to steer Engie's shift towards renewable energy while managing Europe's recent energy crisis and its financial consequences.
Early life and education
🧒 Early life and family. MacGregor was born in 1972 in Salé, Morocco, to French parents who both taught mathematics and raised her in a bilingual, multicultural household until the family moved to France when she was fourteen.[5][6] Her family roots lie in Corsica and the Basque Country, while the Scottish surname she kept from a later marriage contrasts with these Mediterranean origins.[5][6] A strong aptitude for mathematics and science led her to the selective École Centrale Paris (now CentraleSupélec), where she graduated in 1995 with an engineering degree.[5] She later characterised her career choices as \"going where I'm not expected\", a theme that would recur throughout her professional life.[7]
Career
Schlumberger (1995–2019)
🛢️ Schlumberger field career. After completing her engineering studies, MacGregor joined Schlumberger in 1995 and chose a field assignment rather than a desk job, becoming the only woman on an oil rig in the Congolese jungle near Pointe-Noire shortly after graduation.[8][9] Working in a physically demanding, male-dominated environment, she has recalled that she had to earn respect by mastering both the technical and human aspects of life offshore.[8]
✈️ Global operational roles. Over the next two decades MacGregor held a succession of operational and managerial positions for Schlumberger in locations including Pointe-Noire, Aberdeen, Kuala Lumpur, Paris, Houston and London, gaining experience across drilling services, reservoir characterisation and human resources.[9][6] She eventually headed the company's Drilling Group, served as group vice-president for human resources and joined its senior leadership ranks, becoming known as an oil-and-gas specialist fluent in both engineering detail and people management.[9][5]
📉 Setback and departure. By the late 2010s MacGregor had risen high enough within Schlumberger to be shortlisted as a candidate for chief executive officer, but the role went to another executive in 2019.[5] The decision marked a turning point: facing limited prospects at her longtime employer, she left the group and moved to TechnipFMC, where she was tasked with helping to prepare the spin-off of its engineering activities into Technip Energies.[9][6]
Technip Energies
🏗️ Technip Energies and IPO. At TechnipFMC, MacGregor took charge of the new Technip Energies business, overseeing an organisation of roughly 12,000 employees and helping ready the company for its separation and listing on the stock market.[9][6] The successful initial public offering strengthened her reputation as a strategic leader capable of reshaping large engineering organisations in preparation for the energy transition.[8]
Chief executive of Engie
⚡ Appointment to Engie. In October 2020 the board of Engie selected MacGregor to succeed Isabelle Kocher as chief executive officer, choosing an oilfield-services veteran rather than a traditional utility executive to lead the former gas monopoly into a low-carbon era.[5][7] She formally took office on 1 January 2021 and was charged with simplifying the group, focusing on core businesses and accelerating investment in renewable energy.[5][10]
🧩 Strategic refocus and portfolio reshaping. Early in her tenure MacGregor reorganised Engie's management structure and executed a major divestment by selling the services subsidiary Equans to Bouygues for €7.1 billion, securing a five-year job-protection commitment from the buyer and freeing capital for energy infrastructure and renewables.[5] She has articulated a strategy built around what she calls an \"electron-molecule alliance\", arguing that Europe must expand renewable electricity while continuing to rely on natural gas and other molecules for security of supply during the transition.[10] Under her leadership Engie increased its annual renewable capacity addition targets from 3 GW to 4 GW by 2022 and set an ambition to reach around 6 GW per year from 2026, while phasing out coal and investing in grids, storage and low-carbon gases.[10][6]
📈 Crisis management and financial performance. Between early 2021 and early 2024 Engie delivered a total shareholder return of roughly 102 percent, significantly ahead of many other European utilities, as markets rewarded the group's repositioning and strong cash generation.[11] During the energy crisis triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Engie filled its gas storage in France to 100 percent and secured additional liquefied natural gas supplies from the United States, Norway and Algeria, avoiding shortages while benefiting from high market prices; energy trading contributed around 30 percent of the group's earnings in 2022.[7] MacGregor has stated that the company \"managed the crisis very well\", and analysts who had initially questioned her appointment increasingly acknowledged the effectiveness of her response.[7]
🧭 Renewed mandate and leadership philosophy. In April 2025 Engie's shareholders approved the board's decision to renew MacGregor's mandate as chief executive for a further four-year term, citing the progress made in reshaping the portfolio and delivering results aligned with Europe's decarbonisation goals.[12] She has characterised her approach as \"forward-looking leadership\" that seeks to combine purpose and profitability, arguing in public speeches that the energy transition is only possible if companies remain financially sound; in her words, \"you can't do energy transition if you're not making money\".[8]
Compensation and wealth
💶 Remuneration and shareholding. As chief executive of Engie, MacGregor received total remuneration of about €4.3 million in 2024, including a €1 million fixed salary and roughly €3.3 million in annual bonus and long-term incentive awards, a structure in which a large portion of her pay is performance-linked and subject to shareholder-approved criteria.[11][6] Analysts note that this level is broadly in line with the median compensation for leaders of large CAC 40 companies, and she also holds Engie shares worth around €2 million, aligning part of her personal wealth with the group's performance.[11] Her overall net worth is not publicly disclosed, but profiles describe it as a multi-million-euro fortune accumulated over senior roles at Schlumberger, TechnipFMC and Engie.[6]
Board memberships and public roles
🌐 Microsoft and global initiatives. Beyond Engie, MacGregor joined the board of directors of Microsoft in December 2023 as an independent director, bringing energy-sector and engineering expertise to the technology company.[9] She also participates in international business and sustainability networks, including the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, using these platforms to advocate for pragmatic pathways to decarbonisation and for the integration of digital technologies into energy systems.[6] Because the French state remains a major shareholder in Engie, her personal equity stake is symbolic rather than controlling, and her financial incentives are structured to reward long-term value creation rather than short-term gains.[11]
Management style and personal life
🏡 Family and private life. MacGregor is widely described as a discreet and unpretentious figure who keeps her private life out of the spotlight.[6][5] She was previously married to a Scottish engineer she met while working in Aberdeen, a marriage that produced two daughters and gave her the surname by which she is now known; the couple have since divorced, and she is regarded as a protective mother who rarely discusses her children in public.[6] Outside work she is said to enjoy simple pastimes such as cinema and board games, along with hiking and occasional ski trips in the French Alps, which provide a counterbalance to the pressures of corporate leadership.[5]
🧠 Leadership style. Colleagues and journalists portray MacGregor as a leader who is direct, methodical and highly operational, yet also humble and unusually attentive to the views of others.[5] She has remarked that one difficulty of being a chief executive is that \"people don't tell you the truth; they tell you what they think you want to hear\", and she therefore seeks to create an environment in which employees feel able to speak openly.[8] Early in her tenure at Engie she held more than one hundred one-to-one meetings with internal managers and external experts to \"learn what I don't know\", a listening exercise that helped her understand the group's challenges and build credibility with staff.[7] Former colleagues note that her authority derives less from displays of power than from technical competence, calm decision-making and a willingness to spend time on operational sites as well as in headquarters.[5]
Diversity, advocacy and mentoring
🌈 Gender diversity agenda. As one of the few women leading a CAC 40 company, MacGregor has become a prominent advocate for gender diversity in business, arguing that teams lacking diversity will struggle to innovate or understand their markets and that breakthrough ideas arise from differences in gender, experience and background.[13] Under her leadership Engie launched its \"Fifty-Fifty\" programme in 2020, setting a target for women to hold 50 percent of management roles by 2030, and she increased female representation on the executive committee by appointing four women soon after taking office.[13] Business media have included her in rankings of powerful women executives, and her alma mater has highlighted her as an example of female leadership in engineering.[13][5]
🤝 Mentoring and outreach. MacGregor extends this commitment beyond Engie by mentoring young women in engineering and supporting initiatives aimed at encouraging girls from remote or under-represented regions to pursue studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).[13] Commentators emphasise that she presents diversity not only as a question of fairness but as a practical advantage for decision-making quality and business performance, consistent with her broader philosophy of linking social objectives with operational results.[8]
Controversies and challenges
🌪️ Initial skepticism and energy-crisis response. MacGregor's appointment at Engie initially drew skepticism from some commentators who questioned whether a career oil-services executive was the right choice to lead a largely gas and power utility into the clean-energy era, particularly after the contentious departure of her predecessor Isabelle Kocher.[7] She worked to overcome this perception by intensifying consultations with stakeholders and delivering early strategic moves, and her handling of the gas crisis following Russia's invasion of Ukraine—advising the French government to prepare for a potential embargo on Russian gas, arranging alternative pipeline and liquefied natural gas supplies and keeping French customers supplied through the winter—strengthened her public profile.[7] In a separate interview she warned that any abrupt decision to halt Russian energy imports would affect supplies the following winter, underlining the need for careful sequencing of sanctions and supply diversification.[14]
⚖️ Public debate over profits and social role. Engie's strong earnings during the crisis, supported by profitable energy-trading activities, fed public debates in France about so-called \"superprofits\" and high energy prices.[7][10] MacGregor defended the group's conduct by stressing its \"social and societal responsibilities\", including measures to shield vulnerable customers, while also arguing that robust profits were necessary to finance large-scale investments in renewables and infrastructure.[10] The company directed part of its additional earnings towards bill support schemes and acceleration of the energy transition, positioning itself as both a commercial and a social actor in the crisis response.[10]
🛠️ Regulation, nuclear policy and industrial competitiveness. Inside Engie, MacGregor faced the challenge of implementing a strategy largely shaped by the board while maintaining support from about 100,000 employees and powerful unions; observers note that her tenure has been largely free of major labour conflicts or shareholder revolts compared with some industry peers.[15] She also had to adapt when the Belgian government decided to extend the life of Engie's last two nuclear power plants from 2025 to 2035, prompting complex negotiations over reactor-life extension even as the group remained committed to exiting coal.[5] MacGregor has been outspoken about the need to speed up permitting and grid-connection procedures for renewable projects, warning that Europe risks falling behind if administrative bottlenecks slow investment in wind, solar and other low-carbon infrastructure.[8][10] She has likewise highlighted the danger that persistently high European energy prices could drive heavy industry to relocate, calling for coherent, long-term policies that reconcile climate goals with industrial competitiveness.[15]
🏅 Reputation and honours. MacGregor has largely avoided personal scandal and is generally regarded as an ethical leader; in 2020 she was made a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur for her contributions to industry.[5] Early profiles sometimes described her as too anonymous and closely aligned with Engie's board, but later coverage emphasised that she had firmly taken control of the company—one French magazine observed in 2023 that \"today, she is the boss\".[7] Looking ahead, commentators note that her main challenge will be to maintain Engie's profitability while financing massive investment in renewable energy and new technologies, all in a context of geopolitical uncertainty and shifting regulation.[15]
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References
- ↑ "From Oil Rigs to Green Energy: MacGregor's Vision". Sciences Po American Foundation.
- ↑ "Women and men endeavouring for parity!". Engie.
- ↑ "ENGIE at COP 28". Engie.
- ↑ "Energy sector will transform the world for the better says Engie boss Catherine MacGregor". Enlit World.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 "Catherine MacGregor". Wikipédia. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 "Catherine MacGregor : Leader chez ENGIE". FrenchHub. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 "Qui est Catherine MacGregor, la patronne d'Engie propulsée par la crise du gaz ?". Challenges. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 "From oil rigs to energy transition: Catherine MacGregor's vision for a sustainable future". Sciences Po American Foundation. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 "Catherine MacGregor". Microsoft. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 "Catherine MacGregor: I am calling for a Europe-wide energy policy". Engie. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 "Here's why we think Engie SA's (EPA:ENGI) CEO compensation looks fair for the time being". Simply Wall St. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ "Engie General Shareholders' Meeting, April 24, 2025". Engie. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 "Women and men endeavouring for parity!". Engie. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ "Any decision to stop Russian energy imports would hit next winter's supplies – Engie CEO". Reuters. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 "Catherine MacGregor, directrice générale d'Engie : « Il y a un risque de délocalisation des gros industriels si l'énergie reste plus chère en Europe »". Le Monde. Retrieved 2025-11-20.