B.C. Finance Minister Gary Collins is resigning to pursue a career in the private sector.
Collins, 41, has been finance minister since the Liberals were elected in 2001. He is also resigning as member of the legislature for Vancouver-Fairview.
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| Aaron Smith has landed a new role with Flight Centre North America. |
Collins will become the CEO of Harmony Airlines, which began operations in November 2002 as HMY Airways.
The Vancouver-based airline operates three Boeing 757 aircraft on flights to Toronto, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Honolulu and Maui.
Flight Centre North America has promoted Aaron Smith to the position of vice-president of marketing, advertising, events and promotions.
Smith most recently held the position of Western Canadian marketing manager for Flight Centre.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Flight Centre North America retails travel products and services for the leisure and corporate markets.
Pearce Bowman has joined the board of directors of PMI Ventures Ltd. (TSXV:PMV) as its executive chairman.
Bowman has extensive experience in the management of major resource companies.
Based in Vancouver, PMI is a junior mining company.
International Forest Products Ltd. (Interfor) says its chief operating officer is leaving the company and his duties will be split between two other senior executives.
Interfor said Hugh Sutcliffe is leaving to pursue other interests. Duncan Davies, Interfor's president and chief executive officer, and Sandy Fulton, the company's vice-president of U.S. operations, will assume Sutcliffe's duties.
Fulton will take direct responsibility for the Adams Lake and Western Whitewood mills, as well as the company's North American marketing programs.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Interfor (TSX: IFP.SV.A) is one of the Pacific Northwest's largest producers of wood products.
Power company Fortis Inc. says John Walker will be the new president and chief executive at its subsidiary FortisBC. Walker's appointment takes place April 1. He is currently president and CEO of Fortis Properties.
Fortis is an international diversified electric utility holding company based in Newfoundland.
Alan Stephens has stepped down as First Quantum Mineral Ltd.'s vice-president of exploration, but will continue with the company in a consulting role.
Based in Vancouver, First Quantum (TSX:FM, OTCBB:FQVLF, LSE:FQM) is an integrated mining and metals company focused on the copper, cobalt and gold sectors in Africa.
Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. has appointed Vijay Sondhi as chief financial officer. Sondhi has spent the past 16 years in the high tech sector in Europe and the United States. His most recent position was managing director at Allianz Venture Partners GmbH of Munich.
Xenon is a privately owned drug discovery and development company based in Burnaby.
CHIP Hospitality has made a number of promotions.
Gaetan Brunelle has joined CHIP Hospitality's national sales and marketing team as corporate director of revenue management.
Formerly regional director of sales and marketing for the Quebec region, Brunelle is now responsible for all revenue management practices at CHIP Hospitality.
Rachel Koller becomes the corporate director of national sales at CHIP Hospitality. Koller has been with CHIP Hospitality since the company was founded in 1999.
Charlene Krepiakevich has been promoted to corporate director of marketing for CHIP Hospitality. She joined the firm in 2002 as manager of corporate marketing.
CHIP Hospitality's new corporate director of food and beverage is David McQuinn. The former executive chef and corporate chef joined the team in 2003.
Vancouver-based CHIP Hospitality, a subsidiary of CHIP REIT (TSX:HOT.un, HOT.db), manages more than 30 hotels and resorts in Canada and Washington state with approximately 7,000 rooms.
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