People in the Industry

Philippe Donche-Gay, executive V.P. president of the Bureau Veritas Industry & Facilities Division, has been promoted to senior executive V.P. of the Marine & Offshore Division. He has been with Bureau Veritas since 2008. Following his promotion, Donche-Gay has appointed Matthieu de Tugny to chief operations officer of the Marine & Offshore Division. Tugny, who has served as the company’s senior V.P. of offshore since 2015, will retain his previous responsibilities, in addition to his new role. After joining the company in 1994, Tugny has held a number of executive leadership positions.

ABB has appointed Chun-Yuan Gu, managing director of ABB China, to president of the Asia, Middle East and Africa region. The region’s former president, Frank Duggan, has been appointed as president of Europe, succeeding Bernhard Jucker, who has retired. Both appointments are reportedly effective on July 1. Additionally, both will serve as members of the executive committee. Gu has been with the company since 1989, and has held a variety of leadership roles in R&D. Duggan, too, has spent his career with ABB and has held various leadership roles.

Duncan Eley has been promoted to CEO of Polarcus Limited. He replaces Rod Starr, who has resigned. Eley joined Polarcus in 2009, most recently acting as the company’s COO. Prior to joining the company, Eley spent 10 years supporting Schlumberger’s marine seismic operations in Europe, Africa and the Americas. He also worked for a global strategy consultancy firm for the energy, transport and natural resources sectors.

The Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN) has named a new executive director. John Bridges, who brings almost 35 years of industry experience to his new role, will lead the AIPN team to carry out initiatives set forth by the association’s board of directors and executive committee. Prior to joining AIPN, Bridges was Anadarko Petroleum Corp.’s manager of international negotiations for North America and Europe. He had been an employee of Anadarko since 2001, and served in a number of management positions.

Paddy Hardey has been appointed general manager and senior V.P. of commercial at M² Subsea. Based in Houston, he will implement the firm’s global commercial and contracting ideologies, to secure future strategic development and continued growth. Hardey reportedly brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to his new role, as he most recently served as commercial manager of Bibby Offshore’s North American subsea division, where he established ties in emerging regions. Prior to that, he was commercial manager at Halliburton’s pipeline and precommissioning business in Aberdeen, UK.

Zion Oil & Gas has appointed Dr. Lee R. Russell and Michael B. Croswell, Jr., to its board of Directors, effective May 1, 2017, to fill vacancies on the board. Russell has been an independent geoscience consultant with the company since August 2012. He has over 41 years of industry experience in research and exploration positions. Croswell has been serving as corporate controller for the company since April 2011. In February 2013, he was promoted to V.P. of administration and in August 2016, was promoted to CFO. 

Delmar Systems, Inc., has promoted John Shelton to V.P. of engineering. Shelton has been an employee at Delmar for 12 years, and he reportedly has played a key role in the advancement of the company’s technical services. In his new position, he will continue to lead the company’s technical team, developing new tools and procedures, in an effort to increase efficiency during offshore mooring operations. Additionally, the company has promoted Robert Garrity, to engineering manager/chief engineer. He has been part of the company’s technical team for 11 years.

Egil Kvannli has joined Global Maritime as CFO. With 20 years of senior financial and management experience in the energy industry, Kvannli will work directly with the company’s management team. He previously served as managing director at Quickflange, as well as CFO at Sevan Marine ASA. In addition, Global Maritime has named Hannah Crutchley as Group Health, Safety, Environment and Quality (HSEQ) manager. Based in Perth, Crutchley will ensure that the company adheres to the highest HSEQ standards set forth by the industry. She has more than 10 years of industry experience.

UTEC, an Acteon company, has hired Stuart Cameron as CEO. He succeeds the company’s original founder, Martin O’Carroll, following his retirement. Prior to UTEC, Cameron held various management positions at Subsea 7 and Ceona. Bringing more than 20 years of experience in the international subsea construction sector to his new role, Cameron will work alongside other branded service companies, such as Intermoor, Aquatic and 2H Offshore. He will be based in Aberdeen. 

Phil Patman, Jr., has been named CFO at VAALCO Energy. He brings more than 20 years of energy industry experience to his new position. Prior to joining the company, Patman acted as senior V.P. of business development for Thailand’s National Oil Company, PTT E&P. He also served as managing director of M&A at the AES Corporation.

Julian J. Soles, director of Reliability, Innovation, and Fleet Planning at Transocean, has been appointed to lead as the chairman of DNV GL’s Rig Owners Committee. DNV GL hosted the 2017 Annual Rig Owners Committee Meeting in Houston, Texas, on April 27. This annual gathering allows owners and managers representing mobile offshore units (MOUs) and floating production units (FPUs) to gather in a forum and address the innovation, operations and service needs across the marketplace. Soles oversees Transocean’s efforts in driving reliability and innovation, as well as managing the company’s long-term Asset Planning.

Jeff Ritenour has been promoted to exective V.P. and CFO of Devon Energy. He previously served as the company’s senior V.P. of corporate finance, investor relations and treasurer. Ritenour has held a variety of leadership positions since joining the company in 2001. Prior to his 16 years at Devon Energy, Ritenour worked for an accounting firm in Dallas, Texas.

Energy XXI Gulf Coast, Inc., has named Douglas E. Brooks as president and CEO. In addition to this role, he will serve as the board of directors’ seventh member. With more than 34 years of experience in the energy industry, Brooks most recently acted as CEO at Yates Petroleum Corp. Prior to that, he served as CEO of Aurora Oil & Gas Limited, as well as senior V.P. at Forest Oil Corp. Additionally, Brooks spent 24 years serving in a variety of positions at Marathon Oil Co. 

Occidental Petroleum Corp. has appointed Richard A. Jackson as V.P. of investor relations. In 2003, Jackson joined the company from Exxon Mobil. Since then, he has held numerous leadership roles in Qatar, the Permian basin and South Texas. In addition, Occidental has promoted Anthony J. Cottone to senior director. Cottone, who most recently was director of investor relations, has been with Oxy since 2012.