Energy Players

Furbacher has more than 30 years’ operations experience in the industry. He began his career as a design engineer with Chevron Corp. in 1973 and was named president of the company’s Warren Petroleum Co. in 1994. He joined Dynegy in 1996 as president of its midstream business. Furbacher earned a bachelor’s degree from Valparaiso University in Indiana.

Furbacher, who previously had announced his intention to retire, changed his plans after being asked to stay on following the mid-August resignation of power generation executive vice president Alec G. Dreyer, who left the company to pursue other interests.

Dynegy provides electricity, natural gas, and natural gas liquids to markets and customers throughout the US. The company owns and operates assets, including power plants totaling about 13,000 Mw of net generating capacity and gas processing plants that process approximately 1.6 bcfd of natural gas.

Klein tapped as president, director of Fairchild

Fairchild International Corp., Vancouver, BC, has appointed Robert Klein as president and member of the board of directors. He replaces Anish Somani, who resigned as president and a director to pursue other business interests. Somani will serve as a consultant to Klein during the transition. Klein has more than 23 years of executive experience. In addition to consulting in the energy and mining industries, Klein worked on the drilling of a well in California, the acquisition of a heavy oil project in Wyoming, and an over-pressured gas prospect in Utah. He has held roles of increasing responsibility in other public companies and continues to serve as an active director and officer. He was also a director of Yorkton Securities. Klein holds a bachelor’s degree with honors in applied mathematics from the University of Waterloo. Fairchild International, through its subsidiary Syngas Energy Ltd., is developing an integrated gasification production system that uses modern gasification technologies to produce synthetic gas, hydrogen, or electricity. The company intends to further develop the technology to make it commercially viable, and its goal is to sell or license the technology.

Haroon Imtiaz to set up energy services group for Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald LP, a global financial services provider to the institutional equity and fixed income markets, has hired Haroon Imtiaz as vice president to set up its energy services group. Imtiaz has 10 years of energy experience and will report to Josh Margolis, managing director of Cantor Fitzgerald’s energy and environmental services group. Prior to joining Cantor Fitzgerald, Imtiaz was at Sempra Energy Solutions where he served as head of the Commodity Structuring Group, which he formed in 2001 to evaluate, structure, and price power and natural gas transactions. Before Sempra he was at TXU Energy where he founded a group responsible for focusing on wholesale structured transactions and the evaluation of TXU’s generation portfolio, pipelines, and storage assets. At Cantor, Imtiaz will be responsible for developing the energy infrastructure, staffing and sales effort across the country. The group will cover natural gas, power, refined fuel products, and coal markets and will provide a wide array of services including brokerage, structured and risk management products, and fee-based advisory services.

Lance Gilliland chosen as executive VP, CFO at Endeavour International

Endeavour International Corp. reports that Lance Gilliland has been named to the new position of executive vice president and CFO for the North Sea-focused exploration and production company. Gilliland was previously with Goldman, Sachs & Co. for more than 11 years, serving most recently in investment banking services in Houston. During his tenure he also worked in mergers and acquisitions in New York, Houston, and Menlo Park, Calif., completing transactions valued in excess of $20 billion. He began his career with Kidder, Peabody & Co. Inc. in New York. Gilliland holds an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and a BA from Baylor University in Waco, Tex.

Devon Energy hires Taylor as deputy general counsel

Lyndon C. Taylor joined Devon Energy Corp. as deputy general counsel. He comes to Devon from the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP where he served as the managing partner of the firm’s Houston office. Taylor has more than 20 years of legal and managerial experience and will be responsible for the company’s legal matters, including litigation. Taylor’s experience includes domestic and international project finance, asset and security acquisition transactions, and oil and gas contract negotiations. Prior to being named the managing partner of Skadden’s Houston office, Taylor was an associate in the firm’s Washington, DC office. He holds a BS in industrial engineering from Oklahoma State University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Oklahoma. Devon Energy is an Oklahoma City-based independent energy company engaged in oil and gas exploration, production, and property acquisitions.

Martin joins Storm Cat as VP of Canada and international operations

Storm Cat Energy Corp. has appointed Don Martin as vice president, Canada and International Operations. He joins the company’s Calgary office with over 25 years’ exploration and development experience in the western Canadian sedimentary basin and has achieved greater than a 75 percent success ratio on over 350 prospects drilled to date. Prior to joining Storm Cat, Martin was with Nytis Exploration Co., a private Canadian-based E&P company, as vice president of exploration. Before that, he held positions at Evergreen Resources Canada Ltd. He is a professional geologist and a member of the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta, and the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists. Storm Cat Energy is an exploration company focusing on developing conventional and unconventional oil and natural gas properties globally.

Powell succeeds Phelps on board of Abraxas

Abraxas Petroleum Corp. has named Paul A. “Buzzy” Powell Jr. to its board of directors. Powell is the trustee of 17 investment trusts, including the Paul A. Powell Trust. He is currently vice president and a director of Mechanical Development Co. Inc., a tool and die production machine company. He served as a director of Abraxas from 1987 to 1999 and has since served as an advisory director to Abraxas’ board. Powell is a managing partner of Claytor Equity Partners, Cortland Partners, JWM Partners, Emory Partners, Burnett Partners, and president of Somerset Investments Ltd. He is also manager of Westpoint (2002) LLC and WMP Properties LLC, and co-manager of Wessex LLC. He attended Emory and Henry College and graduated from National Business College with a degree in accounting. He replaced James C. “Jim” Phelps, who has served on Abraxas’ board since 1983. Phelps resigned for family health-related reasons. Powell will serve the remainder of Phelps’ term, which will expire in 2006, after which he will be eligible for re-election by shareholders. Abraxas is a San Antonio-based crude oil and natural gas exploitation and production company with operations in Texas and Wyoming.

Ollila replaces Jacobs as non-executive chairman of Royal Dutch Shell

The board of directors of Royal Dutch Shell PLC has appointed Jorma Ollila, currently chairman and CEO of Nokia, to succeed Aad Jacobs as the company’s non-executive chairman. The appointment will take effect June 1, 2006. Ollila joined Nokia in 1985 and became its CEO in 1992. He presented a strategy that restructured the company and grew it into the mobile phone and telecommunications infrastructure that it is today. Before Nokia, Ollila worked at Citibank in London and Helsinki, Finland. He also has experience as a non-executive director, including currently with the Ford Motor Co. Ollila was schooled in Finland and the United Kingdom (Atlantic College) and earned a master’s degree from the London School of Economics and the Helsinki University of Technology.

David Hauser selected as CFO of Duke Energy following Cinergy merger

The chairmen of Duke Energy and Cinergy have named David L. Hauser the CFO of Duke Energy when the companies complete their merger in 2006, pending approval of the new company’s board or directors. Hauser is currently group vice president and CFO of Duke Energy. He has worked for the company for 30 years and has held various accounting positions, including controller. He later served as vice president, procurement services and materials. He was named senior vice president of global asset development in 1997 and, in 1998, was named senior vice president and treasurer. Hauser holds a BA degree from Furman University, Greenville, SC, and an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He completed the executive program of professional management education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a certified public accountant and a certified purchasing manager. Cinergy provides generation and electric and gas services. Charlotte, NC-based Duke Energy supplies, delivers, and processes energy for customers in the Americas.

DOE chooses Rispoli to fill environmental post

James Rispoli of Virginia has been sworn in as assistant secretary of energy for environmental management at the US Department of Energy in Washington, DC. Rispoli was unanimously confirmed by the US Senate on July 28. Prior to being sworn in, Rispoli served as director of the US Department of Energy’s Office of Engineering and Construction Management where he was responsible for management policy, assessment, and oversight of an $80 billion portfolio of DOE facilities, infrastructure, and capital projects. Before joining the DOE, Rispoli led engineering and construction projects in the private sector as an executive with the engineering and constructions management firms, Dames & Moore, and Metcalf and Eddy. He is part of the American Society of Civil Engineers and a part director of its construction division. He is also part of the Society of American Military Engineers and has held several officer positions at the local post level, in addition to serving as the national society’s vice president for environmental affairs. Rispoli is an active member of the Project Management Institute. He is a licensed professional engineer with a bachelor’s degree from Manhattan College, an MS from the University of New Hampshire, and a master’s degree in business from Central Michigan University.

Kerr-McGee appoints Schmidt VP of financial analysis and planning

Kerr-McGee Corp. has named Ronda Schmidt vice president of financial analysis and planning. Schmidt is responsible for the company’s financial forecasts, budgets, corporate strategic planning, and financial analysis. She joined Kerr-McGee in 2000 as manager of financial analysis and planning and was promoted to director in 2004. Prior to joining Kerr-McGee, Schmidt was with Koch Industries where her responsibilities included natural gas trading, equity analysis, and mergers and acquisitions. She holds a BA degree from Wichita State University. Kerr-McGee is an Oklahoma City-based energy and inorganic chemical company with worldwide operations and assets of more than $15 billion.

Horoschak to direct banking at CIBC World Markets

CIBC World Markets has selected Jordan Horoschak as director of US oilfield services investment banking. Horoschak will be based in Houston and joins the energy investment banking group from CIBC’s equity research department, where he followed mid-cap oil service companies and offshore drilling companies. Prior to joining CIBC, he was head of energy equity research at Standard & Poor’s in New York City and has made several appearances as an industry expert on CNBC and CNN. Horoschak is a Chartered Financial Analyst charterholder with more than 10 years’ experience in the investment industry.

Bourgeois named technical advisor to the board at Gulf Coast Oil & Gas

Gulf Coast Oil & Gas Inc. has hired Channon C. “Craig” Bourgeois of Bourgeois Energy Inc. as technical advisor to the company’s board of directors. He brings 25 years of executive experience in all phases of oil and gas exploration and development to the Gulf Coast team. He has experience in the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent West Coast, Rocky Mountain, Permian Basin, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, and the North Sea. Bourgeois has been involved in the analysis and evaluation of oil and gas exploration, as well as development and production opportunities. He has also played a part in facilitating and initiating joint ventures and strategic alliances. Bourgeois holds a BS degree in petroleum geology from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Gulf Coast Oil and Gas Inc. is a Houston-based oil and gas exploration and development company.

CMS Energy adds Barfield to board of directors

Jon E. Barfield, chairman and CEO of The Bartech Group, has been appointed to CMS Energy’s board of directors. The appointment was effective Sept. 1. Barfield has served on the board’s compensation and human resources committee and the governance and public responsibility committee. He has served as president of The Bartech Group since 1981 and added the duties of chairman and CEO in 1995. Barfield earned a bachelor’s degree from Princeton University, and a law degree from Harvard Law School. The Bartech Group, based in Livonia, Mich., is an independent professional staffing service and outsourcing firm. It specializes in the placement of engineering and information technology professionals.

Cynthia Haynie joins SolArc as its first CTO

Cynthia Haynie has joined Houston-based SolArc Inc., a provider of supply and trade management solutions for global energy companies, as its first chief technology officer. As CTO, Haynie will be responsible for establishing the strategic long-term goals and direction for SolArc’s product solutions and directing the product development efforts in support of these goals. She has served in senior-level management positions with several companies, most recently with ROME Corp., a credit exposure software startup; and Caminus, a trade management software company acquired by SunGard in 2003. She has also played key management roles with other companies such as Altra Energy Technologies, Business Records Corp., and IBM. Haynie earned her bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Texas A&M University, a master’s degree in information systems from Denver University, and a master’s degree in technology management from Pepperdine University.

Lance Johnson appointed to board of directors at Maverick Oil and Gas

Maverick Oil and Gas Inc. has named Lance E. Johnson to the company’s board of directors. In addition to his position as an independent member of the board, Johnson will also serve as a member of the company’s audit committee. Concurrent with Johnson’s appointment, Michael Garland will resign his position as an independent member of the board to pursue other business opportunities. Johnson has 30 years’ experience in the energy industry. He joined Mobil Oil Corp. in 1975 and held numerous senior management positions including managing director of Mobil Exploration Norway, general manager of production for Mobil UX Exploration and Production, and chairman and president of Mobil North Sea Ltd. When Exxon merged with Mobil in 1999, Johnson was appointed vice president of ExxonMobil Production Co. He retired from that position in June 2002. He earned a BS degree from Tufts University and a master’s degree from Central Michigan University. Maverick is an early-stage independent energy company engaged in oil and gas exploration, exploitation, development, and production.

Ray Jones signs on to Ernst & Young’s Energy Center team

The Ernst & Young Energy Center has added Ray Jones to the roster. Jones, a 35-year veteran of the energy industry, has joined the Energy Center leadership team. He has worked with clients across many phases of the industry, including exploration, production, midstream, refining, and marketing. Prior to joining Ernst & Young LLP, he served as the head of Arthur Andersen’s worldwide oil and gas tax services practice for more than 20 years. He was the principal editor of Andersen’s energy tax treatise entitled, “Oil and Gas Federal Income Tax Manual.” He has also participated in the development of a number of tax incentive studies for the IPAA, National Petroleum Council, and Mid-Continent Oil & Gas Association. He has served as an industry trade organization leader and has spoken on a variety of industry issues before the US Department of Treasury and the House Ways and Means Committee of the US Congress. Jones holds a bachelor’s degree from Sam Houston State University and attended the CT Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston. He is a CPA and member of the Texas Society, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and the IPAA.

Enterprise Products adds Jackson, increases number of independent directors

Enterprise Products GP LLC, the general partner of Enterprise Products Partners LP has elected Philip C. Jackson Jr. as an independent director. Independent directors now represent a majority on the Enterprise board. Jackson will also serve as a member of the audit and conflicts committee. He has extensive experience in housing and mortgage banking. Jackson previously served as a member of the board of governors of the Federal Reserve System and currently is a governor of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America in Washington, DC. Additionally, he is a retired vice chairman of Compass Bancshares Inc. and currently serves as a member of the advisory board of Compass Bank in Birmingham, Ala. The executive officers of Enterprise’s general partner that will continue to serve on the board are Dan L. Duncan and Robert G. Phillips, president and CEO. O.S. “Dub” Andras, recently retired vice chairman, will continue to serve on the board as a non-executive director. Duncan, who had been serving as a non-voting director to ensure board independence, will now be a voting director since the board is comprised of a majority of independent directors. Enterprise is a publicly traded energy partnership with an enterprise value of more than $14 billion, and is a provider of midstream energy services to producers and consumers of natural gas, natural gas liquids, and crude oil. The company transports natural gas, natural gas liquids, and crude oil through about 32,500 miles of onshore and offshore pipelines and develops midstream infrastructure in the Deepwater Trend of the Gulf of Mexico.

Israel Hernandez hired as senior advisor at EnerGulf Resources Inc.

Israel C. Hernandez has joined EnerGulf Resources Inc. as the company’s senior advisor for deepwater drilling, engineering, and operations. Hernandez has more than 30 years’ experience as an oil and gas drilling and completions engineer. He has designed and supervised international drilling programs and has held managerial positions with Mobil Oil, BP, BHP-Billiton, ARCO, Parker Drilling, Ecopetrol, Schlumberger, GHK-Seven Seas, and Nexun. Hernandez has worldwide experience in onshore and offshore drilling operations, including worldwide experience with deepwater wells in such venues as Equatorial Guinea, West Africa.

Atmos increases board size with addition of Springer

Stephen R. Springer joined the board of directors of Atmos Energy Corp. on Sept. 1. His addition increases the board’s size to 13 members. He will serve on the board’s audit committee as well as nominating and corporate governance committee. Springer retired in 2002 from Williams, a natural gas producer, midstream service provider, pipeline company, and power business. He joined Texas Gas Transmission Corp. in 1970 and was named vice president of gas acquisitions and president of TXG Intrastate Pipeline in 1981. He continued to serve in many positions at Texas Gas, and when the company was acquired by Transcontinental Pipe Line Co., Springer became president of Transco Gas Marketing Co. in 1993. He joined Williams in 1995 after its acquisition of Transco Energy Co. and became head of Williams’ Midstream Division in 1999. Springer holds BS and MBA degrees from Indiana University. Atmos Energy, headquartered in Dallas, is a natural-gas-only distributor, serving about 3.2 million gas utility customers in 12 states from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the East to the Rocky Mountains in the West. Atmos Energy’s non-utility operations, organized under Atmos Energy Holdings Inc., operates in 22 states. They provide natural gas marketing and procurement services to industrial, commercial, and municipal customers and manage company-owned natural gas pipeline and storage assets.

Thomas Stemlar joins board of directors at Dresser Inc.

Dresser Inc. has appointed Thomas M. Stemlar to its board of directors. He serves on the board’s audit committee. He joined Andersen Worldwide SC (Arthur Andersen) in 1961 and was a partner from 1972 until his retirement in 1996. There he served as director of the corporate governance and audit committee professional practice and as director of the worldwide accounting and audit quality assurance oversight and professional education programs. From 1998 to 2000, he served as staff to an SEC-initiated panel to study the effectiveness of the auditing profession in the US. Stemlar currently serves on the board of Fresh Brands Inc. and Ministry Healthcare Corp., a not-for-profit multi-hospital system in Wisconsin. Dresser designs, manufactures, and markets highly-engineered equipment and services sold primarily to customers in the flow control, measurement systems, and compression and power systems segments of the energy industry. The Dallas-based company has more than 8,500 employees and a sales presence in more than 100 countries.

Jack B. Moore elected to board at Maverick Tube

St. Louis-based Maverick Tube Corp. has elected Jack B. Moore to its board of directors. Moore is senior vice president of Cooper Cameron Corp. and president of its Cameron Division. Prior to joining Cooper Cameron in 1999, Moore spent 23 years with Baker-Hughes Inc. in a variety of executive positions. He holds a BBA degree from the University of Houston and serves on the board of directors of the Petroleum Equipment Suppliers Association as well as the boards of several charitable and educational institutions. Maverick Tube manufactures tubular products for exploration, production, and transmission in the energy industry, as well as industrial tubing products used in various applications.

Pioneer Natural Resources appoints Risch as director

Frank A. Risch has been appointed to the board of directors of Pioneer Natural Resources Co. Risch will serve as an independent director under the board’s appointment until he stands for election at Pioneer’s annual shareholder meeting to be held in 2007 and will be a member of the audit and the nominating and corporate governance committees of the board. Pioneer currently has two board members who will reach mandatory retirement age before the 2006 annual shareholders’ meeting and is supplementing the board in advance of the retirements, keeping a balance of technical, legal, and financial expertise. Risch served nearly 38 years with Exxon Mobil Corp. and retired as vice president and treasurer in June 2004. He holds a BS degree from Pennsylvania State University and an MS degree from Carnegie Mellon University. Pioneer is a large independent oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the US, Argentina, Canada, Equatorial Guinea, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, South Africa, and Tunisia. The company is headquartered in Dallas.

Gerald Stevenson joins Noble Energy as treasurer

Houston-based Noble Energy Inc. has named Gerald “Gerry” M. Stevenson as treasurer. He will report to Chris Tong, CFO. Stevenson has more than 25 years’ experience, having served most recently as senior financial advisor for a Houston-based E&P company. Previously, he served in various financial leadership positions at El Paso Corp. and Coastal Corp. Stevenson earned an MBA degree in finance from the University of Toledo, Ohio and a BS degree in business/finance from Miami University.

Noble Energy is an independent oil and gas company that operates in major basins in the US, including the Gulf of Mexico, as well as the recently added Patina Oil & Gas properties located primarily in Colorado’s Wattenberg Field, the Mid-continent region of western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle, and the San Juan Basin in New Mexico. Noble also operates internationally in Argentina, China, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the North Sea. Noble Energy markets natural gas and crude oil through its subsidiary, Noble Energy Marketing Inc.