U.K. oil and gas independent Cairn Energy PLC(CNE.LN) Thursday announced a sweeping overhaul of its senior management team, as the company looks to strengthen its exploration emphasis following the expected completion of a delayed transaction in India.
U.K.
oil
and gas independent Cairn Energy PLC(CNE.LN) Thursday announced a sweeping
overhaul of its senior management team, as the company looks to strengthen its
exploration emphasis following the expected completion of a delayed transaction
in
India
.
Cairn said its founder and long-standing chief executive, Sir Bill Gammell,
will relinquish his position at the helm of the Edinburgh-based oil and gas
explorer in favor of Legal and Commercial Director Simon Thomson. Gammell will
in turn replace Norman Murray as chairman, who leaves to take up the same
position at oil and gas services company Petrofac Ltd. (PFC.LN).
Two other board members will also step down. The company will retain some other
figures, including Deputy Chief Executive Mike Watts, a leader in its
exploration venture.
The changes come amid expectations that Cairn will soon close a deal to sell a
majority stake in its
India
unit
to Vedanta Resources PLC (VED.LN). The time-frame of the Vedanta deal, worth
about $9.6 billion in cash, has been delayed amid a royalty dispute with the Indian
government. Indian Oil Minister Jaipal Reddy said recently the matter could be
discussed at a cabinet meeting later this month.
Following the reorganization, Gammell, 58, will retain his position as chairman
of Cairn
India
,
tasked with overseeing the successful conclusion of the company's
India
deal.
In addition to the change to the firm's top leadership, Cairn said two other
board members would be stepping down. Chief Operating Officer Malcolm Thoms and
Engineering and Operations Director Philip Tracy will also depart, said Cairn.
Finance Director Jann Brown will take up the position of managing director,
reporting to new CEO Thomson.
"Cairn's key strength of entrepreneurial exploration remains the focus,
offering investors significant growth potential in combination with underlying
asset value and balance sheet strength," said Thomson.
Cairn shares were lower in line with other
U.K.
oil
producers following the announcement. At 1107 GMT, they were down 8 pence, or
1.9%, at 403p, underperforming the broader FTSE 100 index, which was down 1.1%.
Deutsche Bank said it viewed the changes "to be a constructive step
forward that is focused on energizing the group for its next steps of
growth."
Deutsche highlighted the fact that
Watts
will
remain as a positive.
Watts
has been the architect of
Cairn's
Greenland
operations, where the company is currently
drilling exploratory offshore wells.
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