41
Ibrahim Jassim Al-Othman
CEO, Gulf Drilling International
Ibrahim Jassim Al-Othman and Gulf Drilling International (GDI) have enjoyed a stellar 12 months. GDI had its best safety record ever since inception, with a TRIR (Total Recordable Incident Rate) of 0.32, which is comfortably above the industry safety record for the year. The company achieved revenues of $543mn, with net profits of $201mn and total assets of $1.71bn – an all-time high.
Key to the achievement was GDI becoming a 100% subsidiary of Gulf International Services (GIS) when GIS, the main shareholder, acquired the remaining 30% shares of the joint venture shareholder Japan Drilling Company, making GDI a 100% Qatari company. Al-Othman, as the Project Manager, successfully lead the execution of the project on behalf of GIS (he is also a Director of the board of GIS).
During 2014, GDI signed contracts with IOCs and NOCs worth $2.04bn, while contracts signed with rig builders and shipyards for the construction of rigs and lifeboats were worth $352mn.
Mr. Al-Othman holds a BSc in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Southern California and an MBA in Business Administration from the American University of Beirut. He has over 27 years of experience in the oil industry working for National, International and Oil Service Companies.
42
Gati Saadi
Al-Jebouri
Senior Vice President, Lukoil Overseas
As the company’s Senior Vice President, Gati Saadi Al-Jebouri will have taken great pleasure from the news that Lukoil Overseas produced a record 112mn barrels of oil in 2014. Lukoil’s foreign upstream subsidiary produced a total of 9.6mn tonnes of crude last year – 2.4 times higher compared to its 2013 levels. The increase was due to the start-up of the West Qurna-2 field in Iraq, the company said, while an additional 6.8bn cubic meters (bcm) of gas was also produced.
There is every chance that total could be broken again this year; large gas projects are being implemented by Lukoil Overseas in Uzbekistan, where cumulative production has reached 25 billion cubic meters of gas. Lukoil Overseas, together with an international consortium, has initiated the implementation of Phase 2 of the Shah Deniz gas condensate shelf field in Azerbaijan.
43
Tony Hayward
Executive Director & CEO, Genel Energy
Appointed as Executive Director and CEO in 2011, Hayward oversees the day-to-day operations of Genel Energy – the largest producer and holder of reserves and resources in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, with production of 69,000 bopd in 2014, a 58% increase year on year, and net 2P reserves of 429 mmboe.
In November last year, the company announced an agreement with the Kurdistan Regional Government to develop development the Miran and Bina Bawi gas fields, while also agreeing terms to acquire its 36% operated stake in the Bina in a deal worth $150mn.
Genel Energy announced 2014 production of 69,000 boepd, an increase of 58% year-on-year with significant further growth expected in 2015.
“Our robust balance sheet, coupled with rising onshore oil production amongst the lowest cost in the world, and the significant financial flexibility in the portfolio, leaves us well positioned to continue to grow even in a period of sustained low oil prices,” said Hayward.
44
HE Bijan Zanganeh
Minister of Petroleum for Iran, Chairman of the National Petrochemical Company
With Iran slowly re-emerging onto the oil and gas scene, following the temporary easing of sanctions by the P5+1 nations, the coming 12 months could be absolutely vital for the Islamic Republic.
Longer-term lifting of sanctions would free up enormous amounts of cash for Iran to invest in its oil and gas infrastructure. Iran has already indicated its desire to strengthen its position downstream and increase its production of higher value refined products.
As chairman of Iran’s National Petrochemical Company and the country’s petroleum minister, there are few people in Iran’s oil and gas sector who wield as much power as HE Bijan Zanganeh.
NPC recognises the importance of the role that the petrochemicals industry can play in Iran’s economic rehabilitation, and Zanganeh will have a key role to play in facilitating this.
45
Khadem al-Qubaisi
Managing Director, International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC)
Qubaisi represents IPIC as Chairman of Compañía Española de Petróleos (CEPSA), the Spanish integrated oil and petrochemicals company, NOVA Chemicals, the North American plastics and chemicals group, and Borealis AG, in which IPIC owns a controlling 64% interest.
Borealis owns a 40% stake in Borouge, an Abu Dhabi petrochemicals joint venture, in partnership with ADNOC. Qubaisi also represents IPIC as a board member of Chemawayaat, Abu Dhabi’s petrochemical company.
On the international stage, IPIC has this year announced a strategic partnership with world football giant, Real Madrid. The partnership will enable Real Madrid to develop their stadium into the best in the world. It will also see Real Madrid and IPIC working together to develop the Real Madrid School of Football, powered by IPIC, designed to help coaches and young people improve their skills.
“This long term agreement is designed to provide Real Madrid with the commercial means, not just to build the world’s greatest sports venue, but also spread Real Madrid’s heritage and football ethos around the globe,” said HE Al-Qubaisi.
46
Amin H. Nasser
Senior Vice President, Upstream, Saudi Aramco
Nasser was named vice president of Petroleum Engineering and Development in April 2006 and then as acting business line head of Exploration and Producing (E&P) in August 2007. In January 2008, he was named business line head of E&P, and five months later he became E&P’s senior vice president.
Nasser has had various developmental assignments, including the Saudi Aramco Leadership Development Seminar in Washington, D.C., in 1999, Saudi Aramco Global Business Program in 2000, and the Senior Executive Program at Columbia University in 2002.
He is also a longtime member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), and in early 2008, he was elected a member of the SPE Industry Advisory Council.
*Since this Power 50 was compiled, Nasser has been appointed as Acting CEO and President of Saudi Aramco.
47
HRH Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman
Assistant Minister of Petroleum Affairs, Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia
As Assistant Minister for petroleum affairs, and a member of the Saudi Arabian royal family, it is hard to overstate the importance of His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman. The Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources is responsible for the production, management and export of Saudi Arabia’s gargantuan oil reserves.
HRH Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman holds an MBA in Industrial Management from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.
During his career, he has worked as both an assistant, deputy and advisor to the Minister for Petroleum Affairs.
His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman is also a member of the board of governors for the Oxford Institute of Energy Studies, the Oxford Energy Policy Club and the Institute of Petroleum. He is also the honorary president of the prestigious Saudi Arabian Economic Association.
48
Abdalla Saeed Al Suwaidi
Chief Executive Officer, National Drilling Company
As CEO of National Drilling Company, Al Suwaidi is overseeing a rig modernisation and refurbishment programme. “NDC’s commitment to creating steady growth, advancing operational excellence and establishing the highest levels of safety and efficiency have enabled it to become the reliable Abu Dhabi based drilling services provider that it is today,” he said last year.
“A modern rig fleet is essential to sustainable success and NDC launched this major Offshore Rigs Acquisition Project to guarantee the highest levels of reliability and ensure complete readiness to meet our clients’ present and future needs.”
49
Guillaume Chalmin
Managing Director, Total E&P Qatar
Chalmin is the man at the top when it comes to Total’s exploration and production operations in Qatar. Until the beginning of the year, production had been carried out based on an Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement (EPSA), but under a new 25-year agreement, Qatar Petroleum (QP) and Total now have a 60/40 interest in the field, with Total remaining as the project’s operator.
He said: “We are more than happy to keep working with QP on Al Khalij. Our new partnership gives us long-term visibility, as the agreement runs for 25 years. We have time to further work together, plan what we can do and increase the amount of oil resource we can recover from the field, which is quite complex from a geological point of view.”
50
Abla Al-Riyami
In-Country Value Director, PDO
A highly experienced member of the Middle East’s upstream oil and gas community, Al-Riyami is currently PDO In-Country Value Director, having previously served the organisation for more than a decade as its Gas Director.
Speaking about the importance of building up Omani talent, she told Oil & Gas Middle East recently: “If we look at the core strategic opportunity in ICV, it is to create jobs for skilled and unskilled Omanis. Much of our immediate focus is on delivering skilled Omanis to our contractor workforce and we are also investing time, money and effort in upskilling existing unskilled members of the Omani workforce.”
