Tony O'Reilly Junior has been appointed chief executive of exploration company Providence. He will take up the position on September 1.
As a result, Mr O'Reilly will step down as chief executive of Waterford Wedgwood's English china subsidiary Wedgwood, and as a director of Waterford.
Waterford Wedgwood said it had appointed current Wedgwood USA president Moira Gavin to replace him as chief executive.
Mr O'Reilly has been a director of Providence since its foundation in 1997 and is currently deputy chairman. He was also chief executive of mining company Arcon for five years.
He said Providence had never had a better environment in which to operate, with demand for oil and gas strong and prices at record levels. Providence recently listed on London's AIM market and has exploration assets in Ireland, the UK and Nigeria.
