ENERGY PLAYERS

John Arnold has joined Locke Lord as a partner in the firm's energy practice group in Houston. Arnold has experience representing energy clients in a broad range of matters including regulatory litigation, compliance and enforcement as well as commercial contracts, due diligence and counseling for project development and energy transactions. He has served clients in the oil and gas sector including producers, midstream and natural gas local distribution companies, and has experience representing clients before numerous Texas state agencies, including the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Railroad Commission of Texas. Arnold was with Locke Lord from 2000-2012, and re-joins the firm from Winstead, where he was a shareholder in its energy and public, regulatory, and environmental law practice groups.

Ardyne makes senior appointments

Ardyne, provider of specialized plug and abandonment and slot recovery technology and services to the global energy industry, has appointed Paul Warwick as a non-executive director and Adrian Bannister as CFO. Spending more than 30 years at ConocoPhillips, Warwick was a regional president for Europe, Africa and the Middle East, before moving to Talisman Energy Inc. where he was the executive vice president for Europe, South America, North Africa and the Middle East, as well as being responsible for the company's corporate technical functions. He was also the chairman and interim managing director of TalismanSinopec and co-chair of Oil and Gas UK. Bannister has more than 20 years' experience in oilfield services. Working at senior levels with a number of private equity backed companies, including Sparrows and Viking SeaTech, he brings knowledge in M&A, change management, and internationalization.

RigNet names new CEO

RigNet Inc., a global provider of digital technology solutions, has named Steven E. Pickett as CEO and president. Pickett will be based in Houston and succeeds Marty Jimmerson, who has served as interim CEO and president. Pickett most recently served as CEO and president of 21st Century Towers, and previously, he served as CEO of WesTower Communications from 2013 to 2015. SpencerStuart assisted RigNet with the CEO search.

Commissioner Craddick to advise DOE

Railroad Commissioner Christi Craddick has accepted an invitation from United States Secretary of Energy, Dr. Ernest J. Moniz, to serve as a member of the National Petroleum Council (the Council) for the 2016-17 term representing the views of States in public policy decision making at the federal level. Established by President Harry S. Truman in 1946, the Council is an advisory body to the Secretary and the Department of Energy, providing advice, information and recommendations on matters related to oil and natural gas and related industries, including governmental response to environmental and energy conservation, technology, legal issues, and emergency situations.

Aqua Terra CEO to retire

Aqua Terra Water Management LLC's president and CEO, Mark Harris, will retire in July. Following his retirement, Harris will continue to serve as an advisor to the company as the chairman of the board of managers. Harris has served in the oilfield services industry for over 40 years. Cory Hall will assume the role of president and CEO. Hall previously founded CJ Energy LLC in 2004 and served as a principal of CJ until the company's sale to CCNG Energy Partners LP in May 2013. Aqua Terra Water Management LLC is an independent merchant operator of salt water disposal facilities. Its current network serves customers throughout the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia as well as US producers in North Dakota and Texas.

Jacob to retire as Independence Contract Drilling COO

Edward S. Jacob, III, president and COO of Independence Contract Drilling Inc., retired as an officer of the company effective June 30, 2016. He also resigned his post as a director effective with his retirement concurrently on June 30, 2016. The company does not intend to replace Jacob's officer position at this time. Independence Contract Drilling provides land-based contract drilling services for oil and natural gas producers in the United States.

Prasad joins energy practice at Guggenheim Securities

Vidisha Prasad has joined Guggenheim Securities, the investment banking and capital markets division of Guggenheim Partners, as a managing director in the firm's energy group. Prasad will focus on advising companies in the oil & gas sector. Prasad joins from Citigroup, where she spent nearly 13 years as a member of the global energy investment banking group. She has been involved in the execution and origination of more than $50 billion of domestic and cross-border M&A and A&D advisory, leveraged buyout and capital raising transactions. Prasad received her BA in economics from the University of Rochester. She will be based in Guggenheim's Houston office.

Newendrop joins Venture Global board

Venture Global LNG Inc. has added energy financial advisor, Terry Newendorp, to its board of directors. Newendorp was the founder and former chairman of the independent investment bank Taylor-DeJongh, where he advised clients in the LNG and energy infrastructure space. Newendorp brings more than 30 years of expertise specific to LNG. Previous to the board appointment, Newendorp acted as an advisor to the company.

Frank joins Blank Rome as partner

Ronald W. Frank has joined Blank Rome LLP as a partner in the corporate, M&A, and securities group in the firm's Pittsburgh office. He joins from Reed Smith LLP, where he was a partner for more than 16 years. Frank has extensive experience in corporate finance and international transactions, and has advised domestic and international clients on the structuring and financing of joint ventures, M&A, privatization transactions, the development of distribution networks, and the negotiation of sales agency, distribution, and licensing agreements. In the energy sector, Frank has served as the general partner of oil and gas drilling programs and has served as counsel to organizers of numerous drilling programs throughout the US, assisting in the structuring of investing partnerships and the negotiation of transaction documents. Frank earned his JD from Duke University School of Law and his BS from Carnegie Mellon University.

SIMMONS EDECO names Sherwood to senior management post

Privately-owned oilfield service company SIMMONS EDECO has appointed Gavin Sherwood to the newly-created position of business development manager for SIMMONS EDECO Europe Limited. Sherwood has 26 years of experience in well services. Before joining SIMMONS EDECO, Sherwood worked for 10 years in a variety of well engineering roles with Centrica, most recently as well integrity engineer at Centrica E&P in Aberdeen, Scotland.

Braemar Engineering appoints new managing director

Braemar Shipping Services Group PLC has named Sheila McClain, executive vice president of Braemar Engineering, as Braemar Engineering's new managing director. Geoff Green, who has held the title of managing director for the past 15 years, will remain with the company as chairman and non-executive board member, performing as senior technical advisor on several ongoing projects.

Cheniere CEO named to board

Cheniere Energy Inc. held its annual meeting of shareholders on June 2, 2016. Shareholders elected all ten members standing for re-election to the board of directors of the company. The board members are G. Andrea Botta, Neal A. Shear, Vicky A. Bailey, Nuno Brandolini, Jonathan Christodoro, David I. Foley, David B. Kilpatrick, Samuel Merksamer, Donald F. Robillard, Jr., and Heather R. Zichal. Each of the nominated directors was elected as a director to serve for a one-year term until the 2017 annual meeting of shareholders or until his or her successor is duly elected and qualified. In addition, the board appointed Jack A. Fusco, the president and CEO of the company, as a member of the board.

Glori Energy CEO resigns

Stuart Page has resigned as CEO of Glori Energy Inc. and as a member of the board of directors effective June 8, 2016. He will continue as a senior advisor to the company. Glori has named Kevin Guilbeau as interim CEO. Guilbeau will also continue in his current role as executive chairman of the board. In addition, Eric (Rick) Neuman, current Glori director, has been appointed co-chairman. Guilbeau has over 34 years of oil and gas E&P experience. Most recently he was president and CEO of Gulf Coast Energy Resources, which he founded in 2010 and led until it merged with Talos Energy in March 2015. Prior, Guilbeau was executive vice president and COO for LLOG Exploration. He holds a bachelor's degree from the University of New Orleans and an MS degree from the University of New Mexico. Neuman currently serves as a managing director of Hicks Equity Partners LLP. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of South Florida and his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

InterMoor appoints Moulin as managing director in Brazil

InterMoor, an Acteon company, has appointed Cleiver Moulin as managing director in Brazil. Moulin will be responsible for overseeing InterMoor do Brasil's business in the region. Moulin joined InterMoor do Brazil in 2010 and has served in management roles in projects, operations, and business areas. Prior to joining InterMoor, Moulin worked in engineering, certification and management functions at Bureau Veritas and RBNA. He received a bachelor degree from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro in 1998 and an MBA from Fundação Getúlio Vargas in 2008.