Finmeccanica names interim CEO after Orsi's arrest

Milan, Feb 13: The board of Italian defense and aerospace company Finmeccanica has named Chief Operating Officer Alessandro Pansa as interim chief executive following the arrest of Giuseppe Orsi on suspicion of corruption.

The board decided in an emergency meeting on Wednesday that Pansa would take over running the company until the next shareholders' meeting on April 14. Orsi, the company's chair and CEO, was arrested yesterday for the alleged payment of bribes to secure a USD 755 million contract to sell 12 helicopters to India.

Orsi, who has been jailed, denies wrongdoing. The chief of Finmeccanica's unit AgustaWestland has been placed under house arrest. Premier Mario Monti said on state television that he expects the government to propose removing Orsi from his post at the shareholders' meeting. Shares in Finmeccanica, which is 30 percent state-owned, dropped 4 per cent in Wednesday's trading.

AP