Schlumberger wrapped up its $11 billion purchase of Smith International at the end of August. Andrew Gould, chairman and CEO of Schlumberger, commented: ‘We are ready to begin the process of realizing the synergies made possible by this merger, and our focus in the near term is on the execution of plans that have been laid out these past few months while continuing to deliver safety and quality in our field operations.’
Aker Solutions and KGNT Holding have established Aker Caspian, a 50:50 joint venture to service offshore field development, maintenance and modification projects in the Kazakhstan sector of the northeastern Caspian Sea. Aker Caspian will own, manage and operate a fabrication yard in Aktau, next to Kazakhstan’s largest sea port.
SWELL BUSINESS:
Oilfield services independent TAM International North Sea officially opened a new £1.8 million Aberdeen base last month as part of a strategy to expand TAM’s inflatable and swellable packers and downhole products and services business globally. Servicing Europe, Russia, Africa and the Middle East, the West Tullos facility will also serve as the company’s primary training centre for the region.
Steven Scott (pictured), VP for EAME operations, said: ‘We have recently seen particularly significant growth in Norway, West Africa and Russia and we see Aberdeen as vital for the development of our business in those key regions.’
Baker Hughes is building an advanced electrical submersible pumping (ESP) system testing and development center in Macaé, Brazil. The facility, to be complete by year’s end, is designed to test deepwater and subsea ESP completions prior to installation offshore Brazil. The Macaé center features a test well for system integration tests with electrical cable simulation for ESP systems capable of handling up to 86,000b/d of fluid and maximum surface pressures of 5000psi.
Aberdeen-based Senergy Alternative Energy has acquired SGC Engineering, based in Maine, US. SGC’s project portfolio includes work on wind power developments.
Geosciences and engineering consulting firm Knowledge Reservoir has announced a technical alliance with software engineering and systems integration company Cimarron Software Services to provide integrated systems and services for upstream realtime command and control and events-based surveillance solutions.
Seawell is acquiring Allis-Chalmers for $890 million. The combined drilling services offering will include platform and land drilling. On completion of the merger, Jørgen Peter Rasmussen will be the new CEO and president. The new COO and EVP will be Thorleif Egeli, currently CEO of Seawell Management AS.
Hunting has acquired Innova- Extel Acquisition Holdings, the Houston-based manufacturer of harsh environment printed circuit boards for downhole logging tools, for a cash consideration of $125 million. Founded in 1989, Innova-Extel employs around 300 people operating from two sites totalling 170,000ft2.
Mooring equipment supplier IOS Offshore, recently acquired by the Acteon group, has changed its name to IOS InterMoor. The June acquisition is expected to enhance the mooring services capabilities of Acteon’s InterMoor business unit.
MacDermid Offshore Solutions has opened a new laboratory facility in Takoradi, Ghana, to provide production and drilling control fluid monitoring and testing services for operators, drilling contractors, OEMs and service companies in West Africa.
The Dutch/Portuguese Royal Lankhorst Euronete group has acquired a new industrial unit in Rio de Janeiro to service Brazilian oil & gas industry deepwater and maritime mooring rope requirements and, later on, to produce buoyancy materials.
Fugro has acquired Edinburghbased marine environmental consultancy ERT (Scotland). It will operate as part of Fugro GeoConsulting.
Baker Hughes expects its acquisition of Meyer & Associates, developer of MFrac and other petroleum industry software, to strengthen the Baker Hughes’ Reservoir Development Services (RDS) hydraulic fracturing design and evaluation offering. Baker Hughes also recently formed a strategic alliance with Intertek to provide fast cargo treatment additive services globally.
Greene’s Energy Group has set up a commissioning and nitrogen services division, which will operate globally from bases in Houston and Lafayette. The new division’s manager Brandon Hillman said its creation would enhance the company’s ‘ability to partner with our clients through each step of the project’s life cycle’.
Stavanger-based TDW Offshore Services is joining forces with Dutch firm Offshore Independents to offer integrated solutions for companies looking to retain a full range of pipeline services and emergency pipeline repair systems from a single source.
Netherlands-based TOS (Transport & Offshore Services) is co-operating with Brazil’s Internacional Marítima to establish a joint venture operation – known as TIM – providing crewing solutions for the Brazilian offshore market as well as general ship management services.
Dubai-based Emphor FZCO has been appointed Middle East agent for the offshore division of Ashtead Technology.
Yang Hua has been appointed CEO of CNOOC following the resignation of Fu Chengyu, who remains chairman. The post of president, relinquished by Yang, is now occupied by Li Fanrong.
Jean-Claude Perdigues (pictured) has been appointed managing director of GDF Suez E&P UK. His 25 years’ energy industry experience includes seven in exploration and production with GDF Suez E&P.
Nicholas Atencio has been named as CEO of Houstonbased Mainland Resources. He previously served as Kerr McGee’s VP Gulf of Mexico operations and VP international E&P.
Martin Rune Pedersen (pictured) became managing director of Aberdeen-based Maersk Oil North Sea UK in September following following the retirement of Tom van Leenen. Pedersen had been director of petroleum engineering for Maersk Oil in the UK since 2007.
David Crowley has joined Enventure Global Technology as president and CEO, succeeding Ray Ballantyne who announced his retirement earlier this year. A 30-year oil & gas industry veteran, Crowley joins Enventure from Precision Drilling Oilfield Services and previously led Grey Wolf Drilling’s US and international divisions.
Cameron Davies, former CEO of Alkane Energy, has been appointed a non-executive director of AIM-traded oil and gas E&P company Ascent Resources.
Hide Matsushima (pictured) has been named industry segment manager – oil & gas for TMEIC GE (Toshiba, Mitsubishi Electric and General Electric). He will be based out of the recently-established TMEIC GE office in Houston.
Adonis Pouroulis, co-founder of Africa focused oil & gas exploration company Chariot Oil & Gas, has stepped up from non-executive director to non-executive chairman following the departure of Peter Kidney to pursue other business interests.
Ricardo Juiniti Bernardo, wells operations executive manager of OGX, and David Brookes (pictured), BP’s chief engineer of subsea and floating systems, have been named as co-chairmen of the program committee for the inaugural OTC Brasil conference in Rio de Janeiro 4-6 October 2011.
Geir Håøy (pictured) has been appointed president of Kongsberg Maritime, succeeding Torfinn Kildal. Håøy has worked for Kongsberg since 1993, holding management positions in Norway, Singapore and Korea.
Steve Rose (pictured) has joined the EagleBurgmann team in Houston as engineering manager. Another recent recruit is Pradeesh Somasundaram, who becomes manager of supply chain & continuous improvement of processes (CIP).
Svein Andreas Dahl becomes chief advisor in the oil & gas section of Norwegian Industries on 1 January 2011 and will be under contract there until 30 June 2012. Currently manager of Aibel’s UK office, Dahl previously worked for Umoe Oil & Gas, Statoil and Aker Engineering.
Eric Wallis (pictured) has joined Trelleborg Offshore from chemical company BASF as SVP of innovation. He will manage the company’s product solutions group.
Ronnie Hall, Atwood Oceanics’ VP operations since 2008, is retiring effective 15 December. An executive search firm is assisting in the evaluation and recruitment of a successor.
Steve Brown (pictured, left) has been appointed business development manager – mining & resources by AGC Australia, an AusGroup company headquartered in Perth, Western Australia. Martin Edwards (pictured, right), former EVP and COO of Maritime Industrial Services in the Middle East, recently became AGC’s executive general manager operations, tasked with overseeing all fabrication, manufacturing and major construction activities.
Gary Oliver (pictured) has joined the Frazer-Nash engineering consultancy’s oil & gas team as business manager. He was previously with Logica and BP.
Chris Jones (pictured), former Shell Group manager, procurement co-ordination, has joined supply chain software provider Korecentric as chairman.
Øystein Roti has taken up the post of managing director, Senergy Norway, based in Stavanger. Founder and CEO of Norwegian companies 4Sea Energy and Orocom, Roti is a former VP of Dong Energy and served as an asset manager for Shell E&P Norway.
Scott Bender has stepped down as president of Wood Group Pressure Control to pursue personal interests, but will stay on through December to support the transition to successor Ian Milne. Gary Moore, who joined the company in August from Halliburton’s fluid systems division, takes over Milne’s former spot as VP and general manager for North America.
Oddvar Dalane (pictured) has been appointed Scandinavian sales manager for Red Spider Technology AS, the remote open close technology specialists, based in Stavanger. He joins from Aker Well Service.
Jason Wright has been appointed the Mentor IMC Group’s regional manager for North America, based in Houston.
Elizabeth Tellier (pictured) was selected to head the newly opened 2H Offshore regional office in Perth, Western Australia. Tellier transfers from the 2H Houston office to manage expansion of the firm’s specialist deepwater riser and conductor engineering services.
Petter Hernæs is joining Schat- Harding Service as VP Europe, based in Rosendal. He was previously MD of Falck Nutec. Other recent appointments by the leading lifeboat manufacturer include Gary Joseph as VP Americas; Andrew Lemmis as VP Northeast Asia; Sonny Choo as VP Southeast Asia, and Geir Arne Bjørkelund as VP Mediterranean region.
Lindsay Young last month became managing director of Offshore Solutions BV, the joint venture between Amec and Cofely Nederland, following Ian Sadler’s departure to pursue other business interests. Young joins from RBG where he was UK operations director.
ABERDEEN AWARDS:
BP completions engineering manager North Sea Leigh-Ann Russell was among the recipients of SPE Aberdeen section ‘Contribution to Industry 2010’ awards last month. Russell, (pictured accepting her award from Chevron’s Gert de Jonge), came top in the completions, optimisation and technology category. ‘Contribution’ awards also went to Senergy’s Michael Byrne (drilling engineering) and Phil McCurdy (formation evaluation); consultant Bill Rob (HSSE and social responsibility); Benchwhistler Associates’ Michael Heaney (management and information); Cameron Laing of LETS (production and operations) and Trevor Grose of BP (reservoir description and dynamics). Abhijeet Kulkarni was voted outstanding young member.
Oivind Lorentzen has joined Seacor Holdings as CEO. Charles Fabrikant will remain executive chairman of the board. Lorentzen previously served as president of Northern Navigation America.
Bruce Thames (pictured) has been appointed VP eastern hemisphere at pipeline services and equipment provider TD Williamson. Prior to joining TDW in 2005, he served as product director at Dresser Flow Solutions and as general manager of Texsteam/Tom Wheatley in Houston.
Roger Ball has been named Asia regional director of the Athens Group. He is stationed at the Texas-based drilling risk mitigation software specialist’s newly opened Geoje office in South Korea.
Karen Gibson (pictured) has joined Sonomatic’s Aberdeen team as the focal point for the company’s topside and subsea integrity management contracts.
John Simmons (pictured) has been appointed CFO at Stewart & Stevenson. He has served as CFO of Production Operators Inc and VP/CFO of Cooper Energy Services.
Jerry Martin has been named as VP western hemisphere for Petris Technology. He is joined in the Houston office by two new product managers, Greg Palmer and Stephan Dumothier, and an account manager, Mike Zyglicki.
Kurt Kriter (pictured) has been name as industry oil spill preparedness specialist Oil Spill Response’s new regional representative for the Americas, based in Houston. He was previously Hess Exploration & Production’s VP global HSE and social responsibility.
Naresh Kumar, MD of Jindal Drilling & Industries, has been re-elected as president of India’s Petrotech Society. Kumar has also been nominated as a member of the executive committee of the International Association of Drilling Contractors in 2010, and first vice chairman of the IADC South Central Asia Chapter.
Peter Wasow, EVP and CFO of Santos plans to retire at the end of 2010 following eight years in the role.
Lee Clarke, former senior corporate development and strategy manager with RWE npower, has been appointed GM of the Forewind consortium, development partner for the UK’s Dogger Bank offshore wind farm.
Jamie Efurd (pictured) has been named VP of marketing at Foster Marketing Communications. Since joining the agency in 2005, Efurd has served as marketing director and as an account executive. OE