Hercules Offshore, Inc. (Nasdaq: HERO) (the "Company" or "Hercules"), announced on July 13, that it commenced a solicitation of votes for a prepackaged plan of reorganization from holders of its 10.25% senior notes due 2019, 8.75% senior notes due 2021, 7.5% senior notes due 2021, 6.75% senior notes due 2022, 7.375% senior notes due 2018 and 3.375% convertible senior notes due 2038 (the "Noteholders"). Votes on the prepackaged plan must be received by Prime Clerk, the Company's voting agent, by August 12, 2015, unless the deadline is extended. The record date for voting has been set for July 13, 2015. Solicitation materials will be mailed on or about July 13, 2015 to creditors of record that are entitled to vote.

The prepackaged plan of reorganization (the "Plan") provides that claims of trade creditors, suppliers and employees will be paid in full.

As previously disclosed, on June 17, 2015 the Company entered into a restructuring support agreement (the "Agreement") with Noteholders who held approximately 67% of the aggregate outstanding principal amount of the Company's notes. The terms of the consensual financial restructuring would support a substantial deleveraging transaction pursuant to which approximately $1.2 billion of the Company's outstanding notes would be converted to 96.9% of new common equity, and $450 million in new backstop debt financing would be provided, which would fully fund the remaining construction cost of the Hercules Highlander and provide additional liquidity to fund the Company's operations. The Company's current shareholders, despite being substantially "out of the money" as described in the Plan, would have the opportunity to receive their pro rata portion of the remaining 3.1% of the new common equity, as well as certain warrants described in Plan and the Agreement, subject to the requirements of the Plan. The Company and the consenting Noteholders agreed to complete the restructuring through a prepackaged plan of reorganization. Assuming the Company receives the required acceptances, the Company intends to commence a prepackaged Chapter 11 case shortly after the conclusion of the solicitation period.

The Company recommends that Noteholders refer to the information and the limitations and qualifications discussed in the Solicitation and Disclosure Statement, including the attached Plan. Information contained in the Solicitation and Disclosure Statement, including the attached Plan, is subject to change, whether as a result of amendments, actions of third parties or otherwise. There can be no assurances that the Plan will be approved or confirmed pursuant to the Bankruptcy Code.

Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell) announces the final investment decision (FID) to advance the Appomattox deep-water development in the Gulf of Mexico. This decision authorizes the construction and installation of Shell’s eighth and largest floating platform in the Gulf of Mexico. The Appomattox development will initially produce from the Appomattox and Vicksburg fields, with average peak production estimated to reach approximately 175,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day. The platform and the Appomattox and Vicksburg fields will be owned by Shell (79%) and Nexen Petroleum Offshore U.S.A. Inc. (21%), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CNOOC Limited.

“We have again delivered a globally competitive investment scope for another significant deep-water project,” said Marvin Odum, Shell Upstream Americas Director. “Appomattox opens up more production growth for us in the Gulf of Mexico, where our production last year averaged about 225,000 boe per day, and this development will be profitable for decades to come. With its competitive cost and design, Appomattox is next in our series of deep-water successes.”

During design work for Appomattox, Shell reduced the total project cost by 20% through supply chain savings, design improvements, and by reducing the number of wells required for the development. This includes advancements from previous four-column hosts, such as the Olympus tension-leg platform (TLP), as well as ensuring a high degree of design maturity before construction. With these and other cost reductions, the go-forward project breakeven price is estimated to be around $55 per barrel Brent equivalent.

Shell is currently the only operator in the Gulf of Mexico with commercial deep-water discoveries in this formation (Norphlet), which dates back 150-200 million years ago to the Jurassic period. The company continues active exploration in the area.

The sanctioned project includes capital for the development of 650 million boe resources at Appomattox and Vicksburg, with start-up estimated around the end of this decade. The development of Shell’s recent, nearby discoveries at the Gettysburg and Rydberg prospects remains under review. These could become additional, high-value tiebacks to Appomattox, bringing the total estimated discovered resources in the area to more than 800 million boe. Shell Pipeline Company LP also made a final investment decision on the Mattox Pipeline, a 24-inch corridor pipeline that will transport crude oil from the Appomattox host to an existing offshore structure in the South Pass area and then connect onshore through an existing pipeline. Last year in the Gulf of Mexico, Shell started production from the Mars B development, through the new Olympus TLP, and from the Cardamom subsea tie-back to the Auger platform. Shell is also currently developing the Stones project, which is expected to produce approximately 50,000 boe per day.

Left to right – Michael Scott (Business Development Manager), Donna Stewart (Internal Sales Manager), Anand Puthran (Managing Director), Ian Allan (Global Product Manager)

EFC Group, a leading designer and manufacturer of instrumentation, monitoring, handling and control systems for the global oil and gas industry, is proud to announce that it has won the ‘Business Success Over Three Years’ category at the Elevator Awards 2015.

Previously entitled The Grampian Awards for Business Excellence, the Elevator Awards were relaunched this year. Winners were announced at a black tie ceremony at the Mercure Aberdeen Ardoe House Hotel and Spa on Thursday, 25 June 2015.

The award win comes in recognition of EFC Group’s strong growth and record sales figures over nearly three decades of business. In February, the Group announced that it was one year ahead of schedule for reaching its 2016 turnover target of £30million.

CEO of EFC Group, Bob Will, said: “I am delighted that the business achievements of EFC Group have been recognised by the local business community. Our success in this year’s Elevator Awards is directly attributable to the hard work and dedication of the whole EFC team.

“Since the inception of EFC Group, we have experienced significant growth and we have continued to build upon our strong reputation for delivering a high standard of service and product quality. We pride ourselves on offering innovative solutions to the global energy industry and having a personable approach with clients. I see this as the driving force behind our success. I look forward to building on these achievements in the future.”

The Elevator Awards celebrate outstanding achievements by businesses across the North East of Scotland, in categories which include Most Promising New Business, The Grampian Award for Innovation, Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year, and Employer of the Year.

Organiser of the awards, Elevator (previously known as Enterprise North East Trust), is a social enterprise dedicated to supporting the entrepreneurs, business leaders and employees of today and tomorrow by providing expert business advice and teaching entrepreneurship and enterprising behaviour. The Elevator Awards acknowledge entrepreneurial companies and individuals that are capable of leading the future prosperity of Grampian.

2H Offshore, an Acteon company, has appointed Prahlad Enuganti as technical manager in its Aberdeen office, to strengthen its management team and drive business growth.

Enuganti holds a master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering from The University of Texas in Austin, and joined 2H’s Houston office in 2006 as an engineer. He worked on subsea structural monitoring projects in the Gulf of Mexico and was responsible for a variety of 2H’s offshore riser engineering and integrity assessments. He was also the integrity team lead for BP’s Holstein, Horn Mountain, Mad Dog and Thunder Horse assets, working with BP to identify and manage risks for its umbilicals, risers, flowlines and other subsea production equipment.

Phil Ward, director of 2H Offshore’s Aberdeen office, said, “Prahlad will share responsibility for the management of the Aberdeen office with the existing management team, and contributes a wealth of experience in structural monitoring and integrity management. He will enrich the variety of expertise we offer to our local client base in Aberdeen by focusing on two key business areas: platform conductor integrity and riser structural monitoring technology.”

Enuganti commented, “I am looking forward to being a part of the management team in Aberdeen; driving business development initiatives and contributing to our continually evolving technical capabilities.”

For the ninth consecutive year, Eni confirms its presence in the FTSE4 Good Index , one of the world's most respected corporate social responsibility stock-market indexes.

Eni, a member of the index since 2007, has been recognized for its excellence in environmental sustainability, respect for human rights, corporate governance and transparency and its relationship with stakeholders and local communities. It is with the help of these parameters that an independent committee from the FTSE Group, founder of the FTSE4Good, selects which companies are to be included in the excellence index.

This achievement confirms Eni’s consistent commitment to sustainable development and ensuring the responsible management of its business, promoting social and environmental development of the communities in which Eni operates.

The FTSE Group, wholly owned by the London Stock Exchange Group, is one of the leading companies in index creation and management, widely acknowledge by the international financial community and present on the main stock exchanges around the world.

Bibby Offshore’s Asian division, Bibby Offshore Singapore (BOS), has expanded its foothold in the Southeast Asian oil and gas sector by securing multimillion dollars (US) worth of contracts in the first half of 2015.

Drawing on its international fleet of subsea support vessels and work class ROVs, the past six months have seen the division being appointed to perform ROV pipeline inspection, remedial and project management work for companies including Moattama Gas Transportation Company (MGTC) offshore Myanmar, and Singapore based Seascape, a Mermaid Subsea Services company.

Most recently, in April 2015 BOS completed work for Indian-based Larsen & Toubro, a major technology, engineering, construction, manufacturing and financial services company that appointed BOS to perform ROV inspection work on its Yetagun D Platform offshore Myanmar. The project involved a cathodic protection survey, anode survey and flooded member inspection in water depths of up to 110meters.

Peter Hughes, Managing Director at BOS, said: “We are committed to supporting the continued development of the region’s energy sector, and provide efficient and successful delivery of subsea projects to the Asia Pacific region and India. We strive to be seen as a leading supplier of specialist ROV equipment, and experienced personnel, and look to further position Bibby Offshore Singapore as the partner of choice.”

Bibby Offshore now employs more than 1,450 people onshore and offshore worldwide, with offices in Aberdeen, Newcastle, Singapore, Trinidad, Houston, and Norway.

De Nora announces the completion of the acquisition of the Water Purification group of Severn Trent Services. The new business line, called De Nora Water Technologies, will be focused on delivering sustainable and innovative water and wastewater technologies for municipal, marine and energy related water treatment applications.

De Nora Water Technologies, together with Ozono Elettronica Internazionale, a global leader in ozone technologies acquired in May, will be integrated into the De Nora business. De Nora customers and partners will now have access to a full range of disinfection solutions for water and wastewater treatment spanning gas feed, chlorine dioxide, ultraviolet, electrolytic and ozone disinfection from the world’s best known brand names such as Capital Controls®, SEACLOR®, ClorTec® and OMNIPURE in addition to the award winning TETRA® and UAT filtration lines.

According to Lawrence Quinn, CEO of De Nora Water Technologies, De Nora Water Technologies now has one of the most complete lines of technological solutions in the industry. The combination of the expertise and solutions will provide for almost any water and wastewater disinfection need, giving us a tremendous competitive advantage in the markets we serve. And our full range of technologies will certainly strengthen our hand when it comes to entering emerging and fast-growing markets such as China, Brazil and India, where the De Nora group is already well established.”

The completion of this acquisition, and the creation of the De Nora Water Technologies business line as part of a Group of almost 0.5bn in turnover, represents an exciting time for De Nora.” Stated Paola Dellachà, Chief Executive Officer of De Nora, “We are fully committed to leveraging the expertise from De Nora as a technological pioneer and from the Severn Trent Water Purification side as experts in water treatment applications with a strong history of reliable and reputable products, to meet our vision as a world leader in this field.”

Electrolytic technologies for the on-site generation of sodium hypochlorite from seawater or brine, will experience especially big benefits as a result of the new set-up; there will be an even closer collaboration to improve the performance and the competitiveness of SEACLOR, CECHLO®, OMNIPURE, ClorTec, SANILEC® and BALPURE®. The exclusive access to De Nora’s proprietary self-cleaning electrodes for ballast water applications is certainly a unique feature that only De Nora Water Technologies can offer to this growing need of the marine industry” said Luca Buonerba, Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer of De Nora.

Optimus Seventh Generation, an Aberdeen headquartered behavioral change consultancy, has strengthened its safety portfolio by securing its first decommissioning contract in a six figure agreement with a major North Sea operator.

The four month contract, which began in May this year, will see Optimus Seventh Generation supply induction training and back to back health and safety advisors to support the safe decommissioning of a floating production, storage and offloading vessel in the North Sea.

Mark Walker, Client Partner at Optimus Seventh Generation said: “Having worked hard to develop our reputation as a major safety and behaviour consultancy to high hazard industries, the whole team is thrilled to secure our first decommissioning contract.

Mark Walker, Client Partner at Optimus Seventh Generation

“Breaking into a new sector truly demonstrates that the company’s growth plan is working, with decommissioning having always been a key target for us. The sector is full of opportunity in the current climate where collaboration is key between operators, the supply chain and, more pertinent than ever right now, specialist safety professionals.”

Optimus Seventh Generation will provide training to all contractors through its Induction Plus™ program. The four hour induction is aimed at projects experiencing a large influx of new, often subcontracted, labour during decommissioning and construction projects or shutdowns. It educates the attendees on the company’s expectations with respect to compliance with the company’s safety rules, alongside a motivational element to engage the project team with ‘why’ compliance is important and how they can raise their awareness of the hazards specific to the asset.

Mr. Walker continued: “Our project support business works with clients to influence decision making and behaviour to help deliver their project to plan and without harm to people, plant or production. Our Induction Plus™ when embedded by the presence of Optimus safety advisers, helps influence the decision making of all involved, ensuring rules are being followed and incident free projects are being delivered.

“Diversifying in to new sectors is essential in the current climate. By focusing on meeting client needs during a challenging period for the oil and gas industry we hope to help clients implement significant behavioural change, and deliver operational excellence globally.”

Oceaneering International, Inc. (NYSE: OII) has announced the appointment of Steve Barrett as Senior Vice President, Subsea Products, with worldwide responsibility for Oceaneering's Subsea Products segment.

Mr. Barrett started his career in the oil and gas industry in 1980. In 1982 he joined FMC Technologies, Inc., where he progressed from Design Engineer to his most recent role as Global Subsea Services Director. Steve holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University and an M.B.A., Finance and Entrepreneurship, from Rice University.

Rod Larson, President and Chief Operating Officer, stated, "Steve's leadership and successful track record in subsea products will add depth and capabilities to our management team. We expect to benefit from his exceptional experience, extensive industry knowledge and perspective as we develop plans to grow our subsea products business, including the expansion of our product line offerings. In his new role at Oceaneering, Steve will report to Senior Vice President Clyde Hewlett."

McDermott International, Inc. announced it has been selected by Saudi Aramco as one of the winners of a global competition for a new Long Term Agreement (LTA) for future brownfield work in various fields in offshore Saudi Arabia.

The LTA, which was signed on June 10, 2015, at Saudi Aramco headquarters in Saudi Arabia, establishes the terms and conditions by which McDermott can bid on future engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) opportunities in various fields in offshore Saudi Arabia.

The signing is the second LTA between McDermott and Saudi Aramco. Currently, McDermott executes work under an existing LTA with Saudi Aramco, which has been in place since June 28, 2007.

“As a long-time partner and service provider, we understand Saudi Aramco’s offshore fields, standards and specifications – and the value that Saudi Aramco places in McDermott’s fully-integrated EPCI solutions,” said Tom Mackie, McDermott’s Vice President, Middle East. “Our close relationship with Saudi Aramco is important and reflects 45 years of operational and technical success, project delivery and execution, and experience in Saudi Aramco’s offshore fields.”

BMT Group, the leading international maritime design, engineering and risk management consultancy, has announced the appointment of Sir John Hood KNZM as Chairman of BMT Group Ltd with effect from 1 October 2015, following the retirement of Dr Neil Cross at the end of BMT’s financial year on 30 September.

Sir John Hood is a non-executive Director of BG Group plc and WPP plc, Chairman of Urenco Ltd (from which he will retire later this year), Matakina Ltd, and Study Group Ltd; President and Chief Executive Officer of the Robertson Foundation; and Chair of the Rhodes Trust and Teach For All. For five years Sir John served as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford and, before that, as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Auckland after a successful career at Fletcher Challenge, New Zealand’s largest industrial conglomerate.

With a Bachelor of Engineering and a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Auckland, Sir John was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to study at the University of Oxford where he read for an MPhil in Management Studies. He was appointed a Knight Companion to the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2014.

Peter French, Chief Executive, BMT Group comments: “We are delighted that Sir John is joining BMT as Chairman in the new financial year. The group will benefit significantly from his wealth of experience of international business and analytical rigour. I am sure that he will bring an original perspective to our business and help us to remain at the forefront of innovation and design in maritime engineering

“I shall, of course, be sad to see the retirement from BMT of our current Chairman, Dr. Neil Cross. Neil has been with BMT for a total of 18 years and has for the last nine years been our Chairman, in which time the Board has implemented strategies that have seen us weather challenging times, nearly double our turnover to £165m and make distributions of £44m to our staff. The Board and the staff of the whole group wish Neil a very happy and long retirement.”

WOC Expands with Global Provider of Integrated Shipping, Logistics, and Marine Services

The GAC Group has become a member of the World Ocean Council (WOC), the international business alliance for Corporate Ocean Responsibility, as part of its commitment to sustainability.

As an active WOC member, the Dubai-headquartered GAC Group will support international initiatives that promote ocean sustainable development and will continue to actively pursue developments that reduce the environmental impact of shipping. GAC Group’s over 9,000 professionals at its offices in more than 50 countries around the world are encouraged to take initiatives that reduce the impact of business on the communities they serve and operate in.

Christer Sjödoff, GAC Group Vice President – Commercial, said: “The sea is our natural habitat, so it makes sense that we should do everything in our power to make sure it is sustained. The mission and goals of the World Ocean Council resonate well with our own determination to serve shipping and other sectors that use the world’s oceans in a way that protects and preserves the delicate marine ecosystem, and the environment as a whole.”

GAC’s commitment to sustainability is demonstrated through its efforts to develop services like HullWiper, GAC EnvironHull’s diver-free underwater hull cleaning system that reduces fuel consumption whilst protecting the sea from contamination by removed fouling, alien species and chemical or toxic substances.

In addition, GAC-SMHI Weather Solutions – a strategic alliance between GAC and the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI) – provides ship owners and operators valuable tools to plan their routes to avoid heavy weather, thus boosting fuel efficiency and reducing the risk of a loss at sea and the resulting ecological and material costs.

“As a Group, GAC takes the long view for sustainable results,” added Sjödoff. “We depend on the seas for a large part of our business, so it is our joint responsibility to ensure that the oceans are protected today, tomorrow and into the future.”

“We also look forward to the 3rd WOC Sustainable Ocean Summit, held in Singapore in November this year, and encourage other leadership companies to be a part of this unique multi-industry conference on global Corporate Ocean Responsibility” Sjödoff concludes.

Paul Holthus, WOC founding President and CEO, added that: “The WOC is proud to welcome the GAC Group to the growing WOC global alliance of leadership companies. The WOC is generating significant interest from companies in the Mideast and Asia. GAC is exemplary of the companies that have a long term commitment to sustainability and are proving it by developing innovative business solutions to reduce industry impacts on the marine environment and improve shipping safety and efficiency.”

AnTech Ltd, provider of specialist products and services for the upstream oil and gas industry, is pleased to announce the appointment of Jan Ward CBE, as new Chair of the company’s Board of Directors. The announcement comes as AnTech continues to strengthen its position on an international basis, with the recent announcement of record product sales.

Jan has taken up the post bringing over 30 years’ experience in the oil and gas, petrochemical and power industries to AnTech’s Board of Directors. With a mechanical engineering background, Jan is founder and CEO of Corrotherm International Ltd and has been an enthusiastic promoter of international trade and women in engineering since the outset of her career.

Photo Caption: Jan Ward, Chair of AnTech’s Board of Directors

Having held a number of influential positions within the UK Chamber of Commerce network, Jan currently acts as government advisor on the subject of international trade and SMEs, as well as having previously held the role of non-executive Director of the Board of UKTi. In the last 5 years, Jan has been closely involved with the Manufacturers’ Association and is a judge for a number of high profile awards, including the Manufacturer of the Year Award and the Queens Award for Enterprise. A previous winner, she is also a judge for the Nat West Everywoman award.

AnTech Managing Director, Toni Miszewski, is delighted to welcome Jan to the AnTech board: “It is a privilege to have Jan take up the position of Chair within our Board of Directors. She brings extensive experience in the oil and gas industry; experience she has used to successfully build overseas markets and develop long-term customer relationships, especially in the Middle East. Jan’s knowledge will be hugely valuable to our company as we continue to pursue our international growth strategy in our target markets.

“Jan replaces Tony Everett, who is standing down as Chair due to retirement and we thank him for his valuable service and commitment to the company over the years.”

Founded in 1992, AnTech operates globally across its Services and Product divisions. It provides cost-effective Directional Coiled Tubing Drilling services, utilising AnTech’s proprietary drilling tools, teams and equipment. AnTech’s Products division supplies permanent monitoring products that are heavily focused on meeting the highest industry standards in the completions market and are supported by specialist training.

Demand for AnTech’s range of services, patented products, wellhead equipment and state-of-the-art DCTD equipment (including its COLTTM Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA) for smaller diameter, thru-tubing drilling and its gyro-steered POLARIS™ BHA for larger side-tracks and grassroots wells) continues to rise. This expansion both in the UK and overseas is supported by a continued focus upon an increase in AnTech’s workforce across all divisions, including operations, sales, engineering and production.

• To supply production chemicals and services to Statoil
• Eight-year base contract duration with four-year option
• Significant contract value, including option period

Clariant, a world leader in Specialty Chemicals, signed a framework contract with Statoil, representing the Johan Sverdrup partnership, on June 3, 2015 to supply production chemicals and services for the Johan Sverdrup oil field. The contract has a length of eight years with a four-year option, totaling 12 years. The contract’s start-date is July 1, 2015 and has a significant value, including the option period.

“We are excited to expand on our close relationship with Statoil, which has been built over many years. This long-term contract, especially with the highly contested bid process, shows the confidence Statoil has in Clariant’s capabilities to provide supply of innovative chemicals and services to meet their needs,” says Frode Bekkestad, managing director of Clariant Oil Services Scandinavia AS. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with Statoil to provide high quality products, expertise and services for the Johan Sverdrup field.”

The largest offshore oil find in the Norwegian continental shelf in 30 years, the Johan Sverdrup field is estimated to hold between 1.7 billion and 3.0 billion barrels of oil equivalents. It’s expected to produce 550,000 to 650,000 barrels of oil per day when fully developed. Statoil – Stavanger, Norway – has been named the operator for all phases of field production by the Johan Sverdrup partnership, which consists of Statoil, Lundin Norway, Petoro, Det Norske Oljeselskap and Maersk Oil.

“This agreement provides the foundation for a long-term, successful relationship between our organizations, with the goal of delivering enhanced performance over the full term of the contract,” adds Bekkestad. “This will continue to strengthen Clariant Oil Services’ position as a major supplier in the oil production chemicals market in the North Sea.”

Wild Well Control, Inc., a Superior Energy Services company and a global leader in firefighting and well control, introduces its exclusive well control training certification program designed to meet the ever-changing needs of the industry by offering a complete selection of action-oriented well control training curricula, which includes both team and individual well control simulator exercises. A first in the industry, Wild Well’s well control training certification program can provide, at the student’s / company’s request, a Competency Report based on the individual simulator exercises, which can be forwarded to the company for their internal HR documentation and to identify additional training requirements if needed.

While continuing to offer IADC and IWCF well control certification options, Wild Well enters the certification arena with a strong 40-year history as an industry-recognized leader in global well control operations, engineering and training services. In 2014, Wild Well trained more than 13,000 students at its well control training centers located throughout the US, UK and Middle East.

The Wild Well certification program meets the standards of other well control certification programs yet further enhances its offerings by focusing on job-specific tasks that provide skill-specific competencies through the use of individualized computer simulations, team-based solution development for well control scenarios and student-driven discussions. Moreover, the Wild Well program offers instruction geared toward regional operations, providing a more efficient use of class time. When they successfully complete the program, students earn a two-year well control certificate similar to other well control certification programs. In addition to an adult training methodology for skill evaluation, the Competency Report, which is exclusive to our certification program, provides students with detailed feedback from completed simulator exercises.

Wild Well clients will now have the option of taking well control certification training for driller and supervisor levels under the IADC WellCAP®, IADC WellSHARP™, IWCF or Wild Well program as determined by their specific well control training needs.

Wild Well certification program classes begin July 6. For online registration and a complete listing of upcoming IADC WellCAP, IADC WellSHARP, IWCF and Wild Well certification program training, visit www.wildwell.com. 

Xodus Group has promoted Andrew Sewell to the role of Global Subsurface Lead to drive forward its global subsurface capabilities. Mr Sewell has more than 24 years’ experience working in the oil and gas industry, initially as a Geophysicist, and joined Xodus in 2012 as Subsurface Manager. He previously worked with Senergy (now LR Senergy) as Region Manager for Europe and Africa. He started his career with Schlumberger after graduating from Cambridge University with a MA in Physics in 1991.

Mr Sewell has worked across Africa, the Middle East and Europe delivering projects including geophysical reviews, field development plans and due diligence investigations. Recent and ongoing projects he is managing include exploration projects in Kenya and field development projects in Kurdistan and Nigeria.

“In the current market conditions operators are looking to reduce costs and maximise production from mature or marginal fields,” said Mr Sewell. “In addition, the M&A market is becoming increasingly active as oil and gas companies look to buy production and financial companies are now looking to invest in oil and gas companies/assets.

“Xodus Subsurface is well placed to support all types of companies in this dynamic marketplace. We boast a global team of multi-disciplined talent covering exploration and production, with a strong pedigree and track record in supporting M&A deals. By combining this broad wealth of knowledge with the latest software technologies, we can propel our capabilities to deliver high standard products with innovative solutions, efficiently and cost-effectively.”

Xodus’ subsurface offering manages all technical aspects of exploration and reservoir development and includes the core disciplines of geology, geophysics, petrophysics and reservoir engineering, as well as more niche skill sets required for activities such as fracture characterisation. The company provides technical services to E&P companies, investors, start-ups, governments and regulatory bodies, and also expert services to a wide range of private equity businesses and other financial institutions.

Steve Swindell, COO of Xodus said: “We predict a huge growth in subsurface services and are optimistic about the potential out there. Our seamless integration of services from exploration through production and development can greatly enhance the quality of what we deliver as well as saving valuable project time. Andrew’s experience and passion for his field of expertise inspires and motivates the team and I’m confident his ambitions in this new role will be realised.”