MERITUS GAS PARTNERS APPOINTS ROB D'ALESSANDRO AS PRESIDENT AND COO

Strengthens Senior Leadership Team with New Appointment and Formation of First Operating Council to Position Company for Next Chapter of Growth

NEW YORK, April 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Meritus Gas Partners LP ("Meritus") today announced the appointment of Robert ("Rob") D'Alessandro, who has served as Vice Chairman of the Meritus Board since 2021, as President and Chief Operating Officer ("COO"). In this expanded role, D'Alessandro will work closely with Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Scott Kaltrider to oversee the Meritus portfolio of operating companies and overall strategic direction of the company. D'Alessandro will continue to lead the company's mergers and acquisitions efforts led by recently appointed Vice President of M&A, Steve Byers, while Kaltrider will spearhead the development of Meritus' strategy and manage its engineering and large capital projects and supplier relationships.

Meritus also announced today the formation of its first Operating Council, comprised of key leaders from across the Meritus operating companies. The Council, along with the Meritus leadership team, will identify and drive the adoption of best practices among the operating companies, while establishing new policies and operating initiatives designed to inspire growth across the business. The initial members of the Council include:

• Steve Bogard, Chair - Vice President, Meritus West Region
• Ryan Diekow - President and CEO, Oxygen Service Company
• Jeff Palmer - Vice President, Meritus Texas
• Steve Stobaugh - President, Meritus Great Plains
• James Garner - President, Ozarc Gas and Equipment

"Rob, as a co-founder of Meritus, has the industry experience and leadership qualities needed for this expanded role," said Kaltrider. "He has spent his entire career building best-in-class gas businesses, and I look forward to working with Rob and our talented Operating Council members as we navigate the next phase of Meritus' growth."

"I'm excited to take on this expanded role and have the opportunity to engage with our operating company partners," said D'Alessandro. "Meritus is poised for tremendous growth – both organically, through the efforts of our operating companies, and inorganically, by adding new partner companies to our family. In just four years, we have acquired 30 well-respected companies with over 90 locations and continue to seek platform partners to fill our geographic gaps. We are well on our way to building a nationwide network of independent distributors, and I look forward to executing on our growth plans in this new role."

D'Alessandro continued, "The Operating Council is an important milestone in Meritus' continued growth trajectory. The Council will be instrumental in defining the direction of Meritus. It will ensure we are making the best decisions for our partners, capitalizing on best practices and realizing the advantages of being a multi-region player."

The Meritus executive team provides direction and support for Meritus' operating companies, which continue to operate independently under their legacy brands. The team includes:

• Cherly Bares - Vice President, Specialty Gases
• Steve Bogard - Vice President, West
• Rich Burke - Director, Human Resources
• Steve Byers - Vice President, M&A
• Allen Jezouit - Vice President, Product Management & Digital Marketing
• Mike Mossbarger - Chief Financial Officer

About Meritus Gas Partners
Founded in December 2020, Meritus is a portfolio company of AEA Investors Small Business Private Equity. Meritus is assembling a national network of high-quality independent distributors of industrial, medical and specialty gases, and welding and safety supplies, located in diverse geographies and serving growing end-markets. Meritus will partner with exceptional businesses and management teams, allow them to remain independent and entrepreneurial, and support them to accelerate growth, improve business quality, and enhance value. Owners are invited to invest meaningful equity into the Meritus holding company to allow them to share in the success of the overall platform. Visit us online at www.MeritusGas.com.

About AEA Investors
AEA Investors ("AEA") was founded in 1968 by the Rockefeller, Mellon, and Harriman family interests and S.G. Warburg & Co. as a private investment vehicle for a select group of industrial family offices with substantial assets. AEA has an extraordinary global network built over many years which includes leading industrial families, business executives, and leaders, many of whom invest with AEA as active individual investors, join its portfolio company boards, or act in other advisory roles. Today, AEA's over 120 investment professionals operate globally with offices in New York, Stamford, San Francisco, London, Munich, and Shanghai. The firm manages funds that have approximately $18 billion of invested and committed capital including the leveraged buyouts of middle market and small business companies, growth capital, and private debt investments. For more information, visit www.aeainvestors.com.

Contact

Meritus Gas Partners
Allen Jezouit
(413) 265-8266
[email protected] 

SOURCE Meritus Gas Partners