Seadrill Picks New Board Members With Chapter 11 Emergence Nearing

Offshore drilling contractor Seadrill Limited has revealed its new members of the board of directors as it prepares to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Seadrill said that the new seven-member board will assume leadership of the new parent company of the Seadrill group upon emergence from Chapter 11 which began in February 2021. The new members include some notable names like the former CEOs of Noble and Subsea 7.

“We look forward to welcoming this new board of directors to help grow the Seadrill brand and execute on our strategic priorities. The new Seadrill will start 2022 in a position of strength and, together with our new board, we will be ready to focus on the reshaping of the industry,” Seadrill CEO Stuart Jackson stated.

The new board members are Julie Johnson Robertson who will also be the Chair of the Board, Mark McCollum – the Chair of the Audit Committee, Karen Dyrskjot Boesen, Jean Cahuzac, Jan Kjaervik, Andrew Schultz, and Paul Smith.

Seadrill’s new chairwoman Julie Robertson is one of the highest-ranking female chief executives in the energy sector. She was the President and CEO of Noble Corporation until 2020 when she resigned from the role. Her career at Noble and its predecessor companies spanned more than 40 years and many roles. She currently sits on the board for EOG Resources and Superior Energy Services.

McCollum is a 17-year veteran of the oil and gas industry, having most recently served as President and CEO of Weatherford International. He also held several roles of prominence at Halliburton, including EVP and CFO. He currently sits on the board of Directors for Westlake Chemical Corporation.

Boesen brings more than 20 years of experience from finance and commercial roles, and more recently general management roles, within the oil & gas industry. She currently serves as the Group Chief Financial Officer at Sonnedix Group. She has previously held various CFO roles at TotalEnergies and A.P. Møller-Mærsk.

Cahuzac is a highly regarded senior executive in the offshore energy service industry. Until recently the CEO of Subsea 7, he brings over 41 years in the industry having previously worked for Transocean and Schlumberger in operational and management roles. He currently sits on the Audit Committee at Subsea 7 and is a member of the board at Bourbon Maritime.

Kjærvik is a financial executive who brings over 35 years of experience in financial roles across the banking, energy, and maritime sectors. He was most recently Head of Treasury And Risk for A.P. Møller-Mærsk and before that held a similar role at Aker Kværner/Solutions. He currently sits on the board for Høegh Autoliners. Previous directorships include Mærsk Supply Service, Mærsk Insurance, Danish Ship Finance, and Britannia PI.

Schultz is an experienced turnaround investor and executive, as well as a seasoned director with extensive experience in stressed and distressed situations, Seadrill pointed out. He is very familiar with both the offshore drilling sector and the E&P sector, serving as board chair for Pacific Drilling and a Director for Vanguard Natural Resources. Currently a professional non-executive director advisor, he sits on a total of seven boards.

Smith is the Founder and Principal of Collingwood Capital Partners which manages public and private investments focused on resources, energy transformation, and technology sectors. He had a nine-year career with Glencore, culminating as CFO for Katanga Mining. He currently sits on the board for Trident Royalties.

It is worth reminding that Seadrill made its plan for reorganization with consenting lenders in July 2021 and received confirmation of the plan in late October 2021. The company now believes it will emerge from Chapter 11 sometime in early 2022 which is a bit later than the previous target of 4Q 2021.

To contact the author, email bojan.lepic@rigzone.com