Lloyd’s Register announced it has made several key appointments to its wells engineering and project management consultancy following a series of major contract wins and global growth.
John O’Neill brings more than 25 years’ experience in global wells projects to the newly created position of Head of Wells Delivery. Having worked predominantly across the North Sea and Middle East for BP, Shell and Schlumberger, he most recently held the role of UK Director – Wells at Maersk Oil followed by Drilling Manager at Total post-acquisition.
Joining O’Neill is Melvin Banford, who assumes the new role of Head of Wells Assurance. Melvin’s 25 years’ experience in wells business assurance and performance improvement, gained through both consultancy and roles within operators, is a vital addition to LR as it continues to focus on ensuring safety, quality and efficiency for clients.
Derek Harrold also joins as UK, Europe and Africa Wells Manager from CNOOC, alongside Head of Wells HSSE Steve Harris, who was most recently Senior HPHT Operational QHSE Specialist at Total.
All positions will be based in Aberdeen with a global remit.
“The sector has, and continues to be challenged post-downturn, particularly in the quality, capability and availability of the supply chain. This has resulted in issues such as stretched resources and more non-productive time. Add to that the emergence of smaller operators, which are largely using an outsourcing model, and the need for an experienced wells consultancy has become only greater, presenting a huge opportunity for growth to LR,” O’Neill said.
Matt Rothnie, Vice President Wells at LR said, “This wealth of new experience and capability has bolstered an already strong team. We are tremendously excited about the opportunity this brings to further embed our expertise at a UK and international level, building upon successful projects completed across the Americas, north and west Africa, the Middle East and south Asia.
“This global experience, together with the depth of our technical knowledge and an offering which spans the full well lifecycle, is a significant asset to the clients we work with as we continue to drive down risk and enhance well delivery performance.”