Xodus Adds Director Duo to Support Global Growth

- Xodus Adds Director Duo to Support Global Growth

Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Xodus Group

Xodus Group has made two senior appointments to support its strategy for further international growth.

Nigel Ross joins as business development director from Wood Group GTS where he was global key account director. Maggie Leitch has been appointed global director for technical safety and risk (TSR) and joins from PSN where she was global head of safety & environmental engineering, managing a team she grew from 12 to 70.

Nigel brings more than 30 years' international industry experience and has helped to develop oil and gas businesses in key energy regions including West Africa, Middle East, the Caspian and Russia. He will sit on the board of the firm's XMOS joint venture in Nigeria and will help to expand the multi-disciplined global team.

A Russian speaker, Nigel is determined that his industry experience and contacts will be instrumental to Xodus achieving its bold growth targets in the coming years. He said, "Xodus is an ambitious, top flight consultancy on the cusp of further international expansion and I'm very keen to apply my global experience and structured business development and market entry skills to help the company achieve its growth target of 1,000 employees by 2015."

Nigel joins Xodus after 18 months at Wood Group where he worked as Global Key Account Director. Prior to this he worked at Petrotechnics Ltd as a business development manager overseeing a number of high-profile projects in the Middle East, West Africa and Brunei. Previously, Nigel worked in Shell International, SDPC Nigeria and Shell UK fronting up and downstream capital projects after starting his career with Scottish Enterprise where he spent 11 years developing export links with the former Soviet Union, on behalf of Scottish-based businesses.

Maggie Leitch joins Xodus with an extensive background within safety, loss prevention and risk management, boasting 22 years' industry experience.

Maggie worked at PSN as chief of safety and environmental engineering for over eight years. While there she was responsible for developing best practice and global policies for safety and environmental engineering groups, developing strategic plans for international growth and promoting personnel and industry development.

Further to this, Maggie set up her own internal consultancy which at peak boasted 22 technical specialists attracting its own external international clients. She previously worked at Atkins Process as the principal safety engineer building upon her past expertise at Total Fina Elf Exploration UK where Maggie spent the bulk of her early career.

Between 1989 and 2002 she performed various roles at TFEE UK ranging from process engineer to her peak position as the head of safety engineering and subsequently the senior project engineer on the £30 million Alwyn Systems Upgrade Project.

She said, "I'm looking forward to the challenge ahead and my aspiration is to help Xodus excel in the field of technical safety and risk. I want Xodus to be both the employer of choice for technical safety, value systems, risk and reliability engineers and the consultant of choice for clients."

Colin Manson, CEO of Xodus Group welcomed the duo to the team. He said, "We are very pleased to be appointing two high-caliber industry specialists and these new positions will help to greatly strengthen our management team as we continue to expand in the UK and new markets overseas."

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

Aker Buys Majority Stake in Norwegian Subsea Duo

- Aker Buys Majority Stake in Norwegian Subsea Duo

Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Aker Solutions

Aker Solutions has acquired 70 percent of the Norwegian companies Ing. Harald Benestad AS (Benestad) and Phaze Technologies AS.

Benestad and Phaze Technologies, founded and owned by Harald, Pål and Randi Benestad, are well established globally in the subsea industry and have been among the key suppliers to Aker Solutions as well as other major subsea companies for a number of years. Both companies are located in close proximity to Aker Solutions' subsea technology and manufacturing centre in Lier, Norway, and employ 33 people and with a 2010 operating revenue of NOK 49 million (USD 9 million).

Benestad, a highly specialized materials science company, delivers high technology products for hostile, extreme pressure and high temperature subsea environments. All subsea instruments and power consumers require leak free connections through pressure housings and Benestad's power and signal penetrators are viewed by Aker Solutions as the best quality with the highest functionality in the industry.

Phaze Technologies provides advanced and reliable instruments for hydrocarbon leak detection, water leak detection, pressure and temperature measurements and water cut metering. The market for such products is growing as a consequence of more stringent environmental regulations and optimization of production from subsea fields.

"Benestad and Phaze Technologies have unique competence and experience within their fields and a strong commitment to developing leading edge and extremely reliable products. They have very strong technological expertise which will significantly broaden and deepen Aker Solutions' competence base," said Mads Andersen, executive vice president of Aker Solutions' subsea business area.

Pål Benestad, chairman of Benestad and Phaze, said, "Aker Solutions share our vision to be the preferred partner to our existing and new customers. Innovative solutions based on strong technological know-how will remain our focus area going forward and access to Aker Solutions' customers and regional network will enable further growth for both Benestad and Phaze."

Both companies will continue to operate as independent companies with existing management and brands servicing a broad range of long standing clients.

Completion of the agreement is subject to clearance by Norwegian competition authorities. The transaction value is undisclosed.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Anadarko Hires Diamond Drillship Duo

- Anadarko Hires Diamond Drillship Duo

Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Diamond Offshore Inc.

Diamond Offshore has entered into two term drilling contracts with Anadarko. The contracts, which will utilize Diamond Offshore's two new-build drillships now on order, are expected to generate combined maximum total revenue of approximately $1.8 billion and represent 10 years of contract drilling backlog. In addition, Anadarko and Diamond have mutually agreed to dismiss all claims related to the Ocean Monarch.

The dynamically positioned, ultra-deepwater drillships, Ocean BlackHawk and Ocean BlackHornet, are each contracted for five years commencing in late 2013 and early 2014, respectively. As previously reported, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. is currently preparing to commence construction of the two drillships at its South Korean shipyard.

Diamond Offshore President and Chief Executive Officer Larry Dickerson said, "We are pleased to place our newest rigs under contract with Anadarko, with whom we have had a successful long-term relationship. We look forward to contributing to Anadarko's exploration and development efforts, working to bring to market energy resources for the world's increasing demand. A first class customer, two state of the art rigs and Diamond Offshore's high operational standards are all part of a formula for success."

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Seadrill Scores BHP Duo

Seadrill Scores BHP Duo

Monday, March 28, 2011

Seadrill Ltd.

Seadrill has been awarded two new contracts by BHP Billiton Petroleum for Offshore Vigilant in Trinidad and Offshore Resolute in Vietnam.

The three well drilling assignment for Offshore Vigilant is expected to take 150 days, and the contract value is approximately US $20 million. The two well assignment for Offshore Resolute is expected to take 90 days, and the contract value is approximately US $11 million.

Commencement of operations under the new contract for Offshore Vigilant is scheduled for the third quarter 2011, in direct continuation of existing contract and mid May 2011 for Offshore Resolute. The contract for Offshore Vigilant includes options for an additional four wells with anticipated duration of 200 days.

Alf C Thorkildsen, Chief Executive Officer in Seadrill Management, said, "This is Seadrill's first assignment for BHP. We consider this as an excellent opportunity to develop a strong relationship with BHP, one of the world's largest natural resource companies. Representing a total contract value of US$31 million, the two assignments improve the earnings visibility for our jack-ups in 2011 at market rates."