People in the industry

Dr. Stephen A. Holditch, an accomplished petroleum engineer and fixture of Texas A&M University faculty, passed away on Aug. 9, 2019. Over the course of his career, Dr. Holditch earned a reputation as a thought leader in the access of unconventional reservoirs, including coalbed methane and shale gas formations. Dr. Holditch achieved the rank of Second Battalion Commander in the Corps of Cadets during his undergraduate studies at Texas A&M, where he later earned his masters degree and a Ph.D in petroleum engineering. In 1995, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, the highest professional honor for an engineer, and was named president of the Society of Petroleum Engineers in 2002. Following successful tenures at Shell Oil Company, Schlumberger, and his own consulting firm, Dr. Holditch returned to his alma mater to serve as the head of the Howard Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering in 2004. Dr. Holditch retired from Texas A&M as a professor emeritus in 2013, to spend more time with family. However, he continued to remain active in the industry, including consulting and serving on corporate boards. 

Simon Seaton has been appointed Sodexo’s CEO, Energy & Resources Worldwide, also joining the Sodexo Group Executive Committee. He is based in Houston. Seaton joined Sodexo in 2012 and has held positions of increasing responsibility since then.Tracy Gray has been appointed director, strategic planning- mining and engineering & construction projects, for Sodexo’s Energy & Resources division. 

Tally Energy Services welcomed Walter Weathers as their new CFO. Weathers is an experienced and operationally oriented financial executive with a history of leading and completing business transformations with a strong discipline in cost and cash management. Prior to his current position, Weathers served as a senior vice president for Brookfield Asset Management, focused on private equity investments for the firm’s flagship leveraged buyout fund. Before joining Brookfield, Weathers served in numerous leadership roles within Cameron International Corporation.

Caliche Development Partners named industry veteran Ronald Baker partner and chief commercial officer. The creation of this position reflects Caliche’s broader effort to expand its Coastal Caverns facility in Beaumont, Texas from the operating ethylene storage business into NGL storage using the two wells under construction. In his new role, Baker will draw on 35 years of experience in oil and gas, specializing in the midstream sector.

Mitsubishi Electric Automation has named Scott Summerville as its new president, filling the position formerly held by Toshio Kawai. In his new position, Summerville will be responsible for expanding MEAU’s value proposition in the Americas’ market by leveraging strategies to grow revenue and market share across all business segments, as well as to define the company’s future vision, and develop and deploy operational and growth strategies. As president, Summerville will focus on driving revenue growth and profitability, and developing pathways for deployment of new products and solutions. 

Michael P. Ure has been named president & CEO, and Craig W. Collins has been named senior V.P. & COO of Western Midstream Partners. Ure previously served as Senior Vice President of Business Development for Occidental, and Collins is returning to WES, having previously served as senior vice president & COO of its predecessor. Ure and Collins are succeeding Robin H. Fielder and Gennifer F. Kelly, in connection with the recently completed acquisition of Anadarko by Occidental.

Quentin R. Hicks has joined Gulfport Energy Corporation as executive V.P. and CFO, reporting to David M. Wood, president and CEO. Mr. Wood commented, “We are very pleased to welcome Quentin as a key addition to Gulfport’s senior management team. He brings a wealth of oil and natural gas finance expertise and experience to Gulfport and we look forward to his future contributions to our organization.” Hicks’ professional background includes nearly 20 years of finance and accounting experience. 

ADM Energy has appointed Osamede Okhomina as CEO. The appointment further strengthens the executive team and board for the next phase of the company’s development and follows the non-board appointment of Sheikh Ahmed Bin Dalmook Al Maktoum as president in June 2019. Osamede (“Osa”) Okhomina has over 20 years of experience in the global oil and gas industry. Recently, Osamede was a founding partner and CEO of Energy Equity Resources, an Africa-focused oil and gas company, and a partner investor of ADM Energy in the OML113 License, where he has secured over $300 million of direct foreign investment into the Nigerian oil and gas sector.

Cudd Energy Services named Gene Sweeney as director of well intervention and integrity. Sweeney will take on responsibilities for Cudd’s domestic snubbing, well control, and special services disciplines. Sweeney returns to Cudd after leading BP’s global well control team for the past seven years, where he was responsible for strengthening BP’s well control capabilities in the wake of the Macondo incidents. Earning a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from MIT, as well as graduate degrees from University of Michigan and Texas A&M, Sweeney has led and supported extensive well control event mitigations, both onshore and offshore. “It’s about situational awareness and teaching how to react to system limits,” says Sweeney. 

EPI Group has appointed a new independent non-executive director to support EPI’s continued growth. Fiona MacAulay brings three decades worth of oil and gas operator experience to the post. MacAulay is currently the chair of UK-based development- and production-focused operator, Independent Oil & Gas. She also holds a non-executive director position with Coro Energy and is a member of Cairn India’s Exploration Advisory Board. 

MFG Chemical has named Andrew Millott manager, financial planning & analysis. Prior to joining MFG Chemical, Andrew achieved increasing responsibilities at La-Z-Boy, where he most recently served as assistant controller. Heather Penney, CPA, joins MFG Chemical as the new accounting manager. Heather previously served as controller for Adams Lithographing and in internal audit and finance for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee.  

Mark Freeman has joined EnerCorp Sand Solutions as chief commercial officer. Mark is responsible for all sales and technology teams across the company. Mark is tasked with driving development and execution of a commercialization strategy for EnerCorp Sand Solution’s technology product offerings across a global platform ensuring the integrated commercial success of the organization. Mark is responsible for revenue growth, sales strategy, technology strategy, and general direction of the company in areas such as product development, M&A, and marketing.