People in the industry

Wood Group Mustang has appointed John Etherington as general manager Malaysia, leading operations and strategic development in the Asia-Pacific region. Kuala Lumpur is the hub of the company’s Malaysia operations, where Etherington, a 26-year industry veteran, will be based. He joins Wood Group Mustang after working at WorleyParsons for 19 years, most recently as COO for that company’s JV in Kuala Lumpur. Etherington holds a BS degree in instrumentation and control engineering from the University of Teesside, in the UK, and is a chartered engineer with the UK’s Institute of Electrical Engineers.

Vess Oil Corporation has promoted Ronnie Nutt to COO. Nutt served previously as senior V.P. of operations, engineering and business development, since joining the company in October 2012. Based in Wichita, Kan., Vess Oil is an independent operator focusing on Kansas, Texas, Montana and Oklahoma.

Halliburton announced that Robb Voyles became executive V.P. and general counsel, effective Jan. 1. He will assume the position from Bert Cornelison, who will retire pursuant to company policy in April 2014. Cornelison has served as Halliburton’s general counsel since 2002. He began his career at Halliburton in 1994 as V.P. and associate general counsel, leading the company’s intellectual property, environmental and litigation practice groups. Voyles joined Halliburton during 2013 from Baker Botts, where he had practiced law since 1987.

Elisabeth Tørstad has been appointed CEO of DNV GL–Oil & Gas, based at the company’s Oil & Gas headquarters in Oslo. Tørstad was most recently CTO for DNV GL, and, prior to that, COO for DNV’s maritime, and oil and gas, operations in the Americas and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Foster Marketing has named Kristy Bonner as V.P. of digital services. Bonner joined Foster Marketing in 2008 as an account executive and digital strategist. Bonner’s duties as V.P. of digital services include working with digital and account staff to create strategic client programs, directing digital vendors and oversight of all digital projects. 

Cameron has elected H. Paulett Eberhart, CEO of CDI Corporation, to the company’s board of directors. She joined CDI as president and CEO in January 2011. Eberhart came to CDI from HMS Ventures, a privately-held real estate and consulting services firm, where she served as chairman and CEO. Prior to that, she served as president and CEO of Invensys Process Systems, an industrial automation firm.

Suntech Power Holdings announced that Weiping Zhou has resigned as a director of the company, as well as interim CEO, interim CFO and president, on Jan. 7, with immediate effect. Zhou cited personal reasons for his departure. Suntech plans to announce new management, pending final review by the company’s board of directors and joint provisional liquidators.

Aker Solutions has appointed David Currie as the head of its UK business. Currie comes from FMC Technologies, where, since 1985, he held various positions, most recently as director of global subsea operations. He will be based in Aberdeen and will also oversee operations in Stockton-on-Tees, and the recently-opened London office. Effective Jan. 20, Currie began reporting to Aker executive chairman Øyvind Eriksen.

Baker Hughes announced that the company’s senior V.P. and CFO, Peter A. Ragauss, intends to retire by the end of 2014. He spent eight years with the company. Chairman and CEO Martin S. Craighead said that the “ample notice of his retirement allows [Baker Hughes] to effect a seamless transition in this crucial role.”

Project Development International (PDi), fully-owned by Ceona, has announced that Mark Gillespie has joined the company as managing director, and Donald MacLeod has been promoted from operations manager to operations director. Gillespie joins PDi from GE Oil & Gas, where he served as senior V.P. Wellstream subsea construction. MacLeod will move from operations manager to operations director. At Ceona, Grant Dewbre was appointed senior V.P. business development. Dewbre joins the subsea construction, engineering and project management firm from Heerema Marine Contractors, where he served as commercial manager in The Netherlands.

MicroSeismic Inc. has promoted Sarah Groen to V.P. of strategic marketing, including M&A work. Before joining MicroSeismic as director, strategic marketing, Groen co-founded SURGE Accelerator in Houston. Prior to helping found SURGE, Groen worked in private equity investing at the CapStreet group; in oil and gas mergers and acquisitions at Simmons & Company International; and as a strategy consultant at The Boston Consulting Group.

Subsea UK has unveiled its new board, following a members’ ballot at the industry body’s annual general meeting. All board members were required to stand for re-election, and three new members were elected: Peter Blake (Chevron), David Sheret (Bibby Offshore) and Martin Sisley (Ocean Installer). The six re-elected members are Frank Bee (Shell), Brian Green (Severn Subsea Technologies), Geoff Lyons (BPP-Tech), Ian Mitchell (BP), Tim Sheehan (Ashtead Technology) and John Mair (Subsea 7). Neil Gordon remains the chief executive of Subsea UK. 

SmartReamer has appointed Jaime Bernardini, a 38-year industry veteran, as V.P. of the company for the Americas. Prior to joining SmartReamer, Bernardini worked for eight years at Petrobras America. Before that, Bernardini worked for Baker Hughes and Schlumberger in various management positions. Bernardini began his industry career with Occidental Petroleum.

Prior to expanding its Houston Technology Center (HTC), Murchison Drilling Schools (MDS) has made several personnel changes, including the promotion of Bill Murchison, Jr. to the role of president and CEO. Willie Lyon, PE, V.P. and manager of the HTC, has been added to the board of directors for MDS, and will continue to be one of the lead instructors at the facility. Tim Arnold, PE, has been promoted from manager of training at the Albuquerque Training Center (ATC) to V.P. of the ATC. Arnold has also been added to the board of directors at MDS, and will continue to serve as a lead instructor at MDS. Roger Comstock, CPA, has been promoted from manager of finance to V.P. of finance, and has also been added to the company’s board of directors. 

Vinson & Elkins has promoted seven lawyers to its partnership: Manuel Berrelez, Christopher Dewar, and Christina Tate in Dallas; Ryan Carney and Adam Larson in Houston; Jenny Doak in London; and Katy Gottsponer in Washington, D.C. The new partners span five of the firm’s key practice areas: complex commercial litigation, energy transactions/projects, finance, mergers and acquisitions/private equity, and tax.

Permasense has appointed Jake Davies to the role of marketing director. Davies brings extensive technological expertise and deep understanding of customer requirements to the role. He has contributed to the development of monitoring systems at Imperial College London and Permasense.