Several US and Canadian oil and gas companies have recently announced changes in their executive leadership.
Amerada Hess Corp. Chairman and CEO John B. Hess will also assume the responsibilities of president and chief operating officer for the company temporarily, following the resignation of Sam Laidlaw from those positions, effective the end of this month.
Laidlaw, who worked for Amerada Hess for 20 years, said he left to pursue other professional opportunities in the UK. Before serving in his most recent position with the company, Laidlaw served as head of Amerada Hess's UK, Norway, and international operations.
Dan O. Dinges has been named president and chief operating officer of Cabot Oil & Gas Corp., Houston. Most recently, Dinges worked for 20 years at Samedan Oil Corp., a subsidiary of Noble Affiliates Inc., Houston. Over the last 3 years Dinges served as Samedan's senior vice-president and division general manager for the company's offshore division. He also served as a member of Samedan's executive operating committee.
Dinges started his career as a landman for ExxonMobil Corp. predecessor Mobil Oil Corp. covering Louisiana, Arkansas, and the central Gulf of Mexico. After 4 years of expanding responsibilities at Mobil, he joined Samedan as a division landman, offshore.
Dinges has held numerous positions at Samedan, including division manager, vice-president, and senior vice-president.
Separately, Cabot also named Michael B. Walen senior vice-president, exploration and production. Walen will be responsible for all of Cabot's regional operations, including the expanding exploration activities in each area.
David E. Powell has been named chairman of Calgary-based Pacific Tiger Energy Inc. Powell has more than 40 years of oil industry experience and has held senior management positions with several companies worldwide.
Powell formerly served as president of Hudbay Oil Ltd.'s international unit during the early 1980s and as president, CEO, and director of Home Oil Co. Ltd. in the early 1990s. Currently, he serves as chairman and director of Talisman Energy Inc., Calgary.
Midstream moves
Arvind Murlidhar Uplenchwar has been appointed director, pipelines, of Indian Oil Corp. Ltd. Most recently, Uplenchwar served as executive director, engineering and consultancy, for IOC's pipelines division.
In his new position, Uplenchwar will oversee IOC's 6,500 km crude oil and petroleum products pipeline system. Before joining IOC as senior maintenance manager, Uplenchwar served as chief engineer with Shipping Corp. of India Ltd.
Downstream moves
Sunoco Inc., Philadelphia, announced several organizational changes said to "complement" the refining company's growth strategy by "realigning its business structure," it said.
The changes, said Sunoco Chairman and CEO John G. Drosdick, are closely related to the company's recently announced plans to create a master limited partnership (MLP) (see Company News, p. 44).
Drosdick said the changes are necessary for the company "to operate at its full potential." Four business operations will be created: refining, marketing, chemicals, and coke.
Deborah M. Fretz, senior vice-president, will have responsibility for all logistics business and will focus on the creation of the MLP. Fretz will be named CEO and president of Sunoco Logistics Partner LP.
In addition to his role as senior vice-president, refining, for the northeastern US, Joel H. Maness will oversee Sunoco's refineries in Toledo, Ohio, and in Tulsa, and will manage the company's lubricants business.
Robert W. Owens, currently senior vice-president, marketing operations, for the East Coast, will have the additional responsibility for Sunoco's MidAmerica marketing division and its 1,000 retail outlets.