Farandou is currently executive chairman of Keolis. A graduate of engineering from Mines ParisTech, Farandou began his career with US mining company Amax before joining SNCF in 1981.
In 1993 he was appointed project manager for the launch of the Paris - Lille high-speed line, before going on to create the legal structure for Thalys International, where he was also general manager between 1993 and 1998.
Farandou led the SNCF Rhône Alpes region between 2002 and the end of 2004, when he joined Keolis, initially as head of Keolis Lyon, which operates bus, metro and tram services in the French city.
In 2006 he was appointed director of SNCF Proximités, before becoming deputy managing director of SNCF Epic in June 2012. He was appointed chairman of Keolis in August 2012.
Farandou will take over from Pepy on January 1 2020.
