The Board of the Dublin Airport Authority today appointed Mr Declan Collier as chief executive of the company.
Mr Collier (49) has worked all his professional career with energy giant ExxonMobil.
He is based in London as ExxonMobil's Alternative Fuels & District Heating Executive for Europe.
Mr Collier, who will take up his new position in early April, has held a number of senior executive positions with Esso Ireland including, most recently, chairman and chief executive.
The authority is understood to be considering a major rationalisation programme for Shannon Airport - which could result in the loss of over 200 jobs.
The board of the authority - which remains the ultimate owner of Shannon, Cork and Dublin Airports - is likely to seek most the job cuts in the catering division, which is based in Shannon, according to sources.