Oil & Gas Middle East Power 50 2017: 11-20

12. Wang Yilin, Chairman, CNPC

Wang Yilin assumed a leadership role in the state-owned CNPC in 2003, brining onboard over 30 years of expericne in China’s oil and gas industry. In addition to the company’s onshore and offshore operations in the People’s Republic of China, Africa, Central Asia-Russia, South America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, the company also owns and operates a pipeline network of 79,054km of both crude oil, natural gas, and refined products. Over the years, Yilin built a particularly solid relationship with Russia’s oil and gas major players. The last of his meetings with the chairman of Gazprom’s management committee Alexey Miller was held to start commercial negotiations on gas supplies from Russia to China. Recently, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) signed an agreement with CNPC awarding it 8% interest in an onshore oil concession operated by ADCO in return for a sign up bonus of $1.77bn which CNPC had paid to enter the concession. The agreement was signed by Yilin and ADNOC’s CEO Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber, stipulating the term of 40 years starting backdated to January 2015. Under Yilin’s leadership, the company, which was founded in 1955, is definitely following a new approach, making it leaner in the face of the current tough conditions.

13. Darren W. Woods, CEO, ExxonMobil

The downturn impacted all oil and gas majors and ExxonMobil is no exception. Only seven years ago, it had over $45bn in cash, but, as a result of increasing debt, the company lost its AAA credit rating. However, contrary to what other companies in the industry are doing in light of the downturn, Darren W. Woods, who assumed the role of CEO after Rex W. Tillerson departed to become US secretary of state, has promised to push ahead with new drilling and refinery expansions. Indeed, he announced that the company’s current capital and exploration expenses of $22bn are to expand to an average of $25bn annually through to 2020, enabling the oil major to increase daily production. Among its operations in the region are the UAE’s Upper Zakum concession which the oil major entered in 2006, a project in Iraq with South Oil Company to rehabilitate and redevelop the West Qurna I field, and development work in North Field in Qatar.

14. Vicki A. Hollub, CEO, Occidental Petroleum

When 56-year-old Vicki Hollub became president and CEO of Occidental Petroleum Corporation in April 2016, she became the first female to assume such as role in a major US oil company. Having started her career in the company in 1981, moving through a variety of management and technical positions across the US, Russia, Venezuela, and Ecuador, Hollub is no new face to Oxy. In an interview published in Oil & Gas Middle East, she said, “It’s only about 15 years ago that we were at a $40 oil price, and our cost structure worked in that environment. So we’ve got to get back to the point where we as a company can manoeuvre in a lower price range.” To combat the new market conditions, Oxy, which has a market value of about $61bn, has employed various methods including the reduction of drilling costs by up to 45%, thanks to a proprietary drilling programme. The firm is also looking at data analytics to help reduce fees for both drilling and managing a well when it is completed.

15. Jabbar al-Luaibi, Iraq National Oil Company

The appointment of Jabbar al-Luaibi as Iraq oil minister, as well as other government appointments, came after a cabinet reshuffle that was delayed by months of political disputes and street protests against the government’s inaction on promised reforms in mid-2016. Luaibi is a native of the southern region, where the majority of Iraq’s oil reserves are. Over the previous decade, Iraq’s oil production surged after foreign companies re-entered its domestic oil and gas market. At the time of his appointment, the country was pumping 4.6mn barrels per day, making it the second largest oil producer. Under his role comes the responsibility of managing Iraq National Oil Company, which was founded in 1966. Prior to the war in the 1980’s, the company had a production capacity of 3mn bpd. It wasn’t until 2009 when INOC was rebuilt again. While Luaibi is left with the grim task or reviewing contracts, negotiating repayment arrangements after the government was unable to pay the international companies operating its large oilfields, and managing the disputes over oil profits among the Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish groups, he still sits on one of the largest oil reserves in the world.

16. Tarek El Hadidy, CEO, EGPC

EGPC is the entity through which the Egyptian government manages the country’s hydrocarbon sources. The company was founded in 1956 but was known as General Petroleum Authority until it was renamed to EGPC in 1962. It wasn’t before 1976, however, that Egypt became a net exporter of crude oil. Throughout its history, the company always enjoyed a close relationship with the Egyptian ministry of oil. It owns 12 public sector companies including subsidiaries like Suez Oil Processing Co, Cairo Petroleum Refining Co, Western Desert Petroleum Co, Belayim Petroleum Co, Suez Oil Co, Geisum Oil Co, El Amal Petroleum Co, The Arab Petroleum Pipelines Co, and Egyptian Natural Gases Co. Along with its partners, EGPC has a total paid capital of $938mn. Even though the low oil prices impacted the company and the oil and gas industry of Egypt at large, EGPC managed to overcome these tough times through seeking successful partnerships. Prior to Aramco’s decision to resume suspended oil shipments, Egypt approached other potential energy partners in the region. In the meantime, Kuwaiti newspapers reported that the Kuwaiti cabinet had approved a nine-months extension of oil exports to Egypt, allowing up to 2mn barrels of oil to be delivered each month.

17. Abdelmoumen Ould Kadour, CEO, Sonatrach

Operating in the oil rich region of North Africa, Sonatrach is a state-owned entity in Algeria that was founded in 1989. Through its subsidiaries, the company engages in the business of trading and shipping of hydrocarbons like crude oil, natural gas, and liquefied natural gas (LNG). In addition, it owns a fleet of LPG carriers for the transportation of LPG, offering its services to Asia, US, Africa, and Europe. During the downturn, the Algerian energy industry looked for outside support to cope with the new oil prices. Just recently, the Algerian government signed with the European Union a $42mn package to support Algeria diversify its economy and improve business climate. Abdelmoumen Engineer Ould Kadour was named chief executive just last month, replacing Amine Mazouzi who was appointed just two years earlier. The ministerial statement that announced the appointment gave no reason for the replacement. The surprise decision to remove Mazouzi came at a sensitive time for Sonatrach and Algeria, which began to increase oil and gas production last year after a prolonged period of stagnation and a lack of major foreign investment.

18. Emma Marcegaglia, Chairman, Eni

Emma Marcegaglia, another notable female leader in our list for this year, has graced the Power 50 for the second year in a row. Ironically, the role that she holds at Eni, among others, bears the title of chairman. Still, the oil and gas industry has made remarkable progress in terms of bridging the gender gap in the sector. Under her watch, Eni has been engaged in oil and gas, electricity generation and sale, petrochemicals, oilfield services construction, and field development and production activities. The company also handles liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations in 40 different countries including Libya, Egypt, Algeria, and Iraq. Headquartered in Rome, Italy, it was founded in 1953. Soon after, the company got involved in exploration and product in the Middle East with operations commencing in the 1950’s in Egypt, Kuwait and Libya, and in the 1960’s in Tunisia, Oman and Saudi Arabia. In 2015, the company’s hydrocarbon production totalled 1,760mn bpd, an increase of 10.1% from the previous year, thanks to higher production in Libya, Iran, and Iraq. Similarly, its natural gas production surged.

19. Saif Humaid Al Falasi, CEO, Emirates National Oil Company

A wholly Dubai Government-owned company, the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) was established in 1993, making it one of the younger operators in our Power 50 list this year. With operations in 60 markets and over 9,000 employees, CEO Saif Humaid Al Falasi bears a significant responsibility on his shoulders. As a part of his role, Al Falasi was in charge of Dragon Oil, the exploration and production arm of ENOC which operates several projects in Iraq, Algeria, Tunisia, Afghanistan, and Egypt. Al Falasi brings with him 37 years of experience in the UAE oil and gas industry with management roles in the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) as well as in multinationals like Exxon, BP, JODCO, and Total. He joined ENOC in 2008 as group general manager and became the CEO shortly after the dip in oil prices in March 2015. Over the years, the company has evolved from a local oil and gas player to an integrated global player with assets and operations across the energy sector value chain, according to the official website, reflecting the fact that Dubai is one of the least oil and gas dependent economies in the region.

20. Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, CEO, Dolphin Energy

The Abu Dhabi-based Dolphin Energy is a joint venture launched in 1999 between Mubadala, which owns a majority of 51% stake in the entity, and the International Oil Companies (IOCs) Occidental Petroleum and Total, all of which happen to be on our Power 50 for this year. The initiative, however, did not begin gas production until 2007. Some of the company’s operations include the production and processing of natural gas from Qatar’s offshore North Field and the transportation of the processed gas by a subsea pipeline to the UAE and Oman. Other energy developments include the 182km Al Ain – Fujairah gas pipeline which was completed in 2003, marking the first cross-border refined natural gas transmission in the region. Later in 2010, Dolphin Energy finalised the 244km Taweelah – Fujairah Pipeline, transporting gas supply to the UAE’s eastern region. According to the official website, the year 2016 saw Dolphin Energy produce its six trillionth cubic feet of gas. Bearing in mind the company’s strategic objectives, CEO Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh also holds a number of other prominent positions in Abu Dhabi, giving him a full perspective of the government’s overall energy vision.

Oil & Gas Middle East Power 50 2017: 21-30