Gay has been directing the day-to-day affairs of the company since Tom Rooney resigned as CEO earlier this year.
“We conducted a comprehensive search for the company’s next leader and concluded that Joel is the right individual with the right experience, vision and acumen,” said Hans Peter Michelet, chairman of Energy Recovery’s board of directors. “During the transition period, Joel has successfully led the company and created stability. He has implemented a number of key operating and strategic initiatives, including rationalizing our cost structure and re-focusing the company’s sales strategy.”
Gay joined Energy Recovery in 2012 and was appointed CFO in 2014.
For the last year and a half, Gay has directly managed and led the VorTeq initiative, including the execution of the strategic alliance with Liberty Oilfield Services.
He has also been identified as an inventor in a number of VorTeq patent applications.
Ole Peter Lorentzen, Energy Recovery’s largest shareholder and a member of the board of directors, added: “Joel’s appointment as chief executive officer is the right decision. Ludvig Lorentzen AS has significantly invested in Energy Recovery, and we feel Joel is the right individual to lead us through our new initiatives, expand our technology portfolio and markets, and increase long-term shareholder value.”