Press release
Board of
Directors and Executive Management Changes
New leadership appointments
to deliver Ithaca Energy's next phase of growth following
transformational Business Combination
Ithaca Energy plc, ("Ithaca Energy"
or the "Company"), a leading independent oil and gas operator in
the North Sea today announces a number of changes to its Board of
Directors and Executive Management team to strengthen the Company's
leadership as it embarks on its next phase of growth, having
recently announced its proposed transformational business
combination with substantially all of the upstream assets of Eni in
the UK (the "Eni UK Business") (the "Business
Combination").
The Business Combination, announced
on 23 April, will when complete create a UKCS powerhouse with the
single largest resource base in the UK North Sea, creating a
strategic platform for long-term growth in the basin and the
pathway to becoming the largest producer in the UKCS by
20301. The combined business will benefit from
complementary cashflows of a diversified and balanced portfolio
with the potential for material long-term organic and inorganic
growth and significant value creation unlocked through operational
and financial synergies. The highly-cash generative combination
provides material dividend capacity with an ambition for up to $500
million total dividends in 2024 and 20252.
The Board, which has also consulted with the
Company's majority shareholder and Eni in arriving at its
decisions, believes that the new leadership appointments,
detailed below, will strengthen the Company's executive leadership,
providing the business with the appropriate leadership composition
on completion to deliver the ambitious growth plans of the combined
business. The changes include:
· Departure
of Gilad Myerson as Executive Chairman, succeeded by Dave
Blackwood, CBE who will become interim Non-Executive Chairman, to
be followed by the proposed appointment of Yaniv Friedman as
Executive Chairman, once all formal conditions to his appointment
have been satisfied
·
Proposed appointment of Luciano Vasques as Chief Executive
Officer on completion of the Business Combination
· Iain
Lewis to return to his role of Chief Financial Officer at Business
Combination completion, following his spell as interim Chief
Executive Officer
·
Appointment of Odin Estensen as Chief Operating
Officer
·
Appointment of Zvika Zivlin as Senior Independent Director,
as announced 16 May
Executive
Chairman Succession
Having guided the Company through its
acquisition-led growth strategy since 2019, culminating in the
recent Business Combination with ENI UK, Gilad Myerson will now be
stepping down from his role as Executive Chairman with immediate
effect. Gilad has been an instrumental part of Ithaca Energy's
growth, increasing its footprint, production, reserves and cash
flows significantly through the integration of Chevron North Sea,
the acquisitions of Mitsui UK, Marubeni UK, Summit E&P (UK) and
Siccar Point Energy, the milestone sanctioning of the Rosebank
development, the Company's listing on the London Stock Exchange and
the recent announcement of the transformational Business
Combination.
Gilad will be available as an advisor to the
Company to provide assistance as required for a limited period of
time. Dave Blackwood, CBE will serve as non-executive Chairman
until his successor is formally appointed then returning to his
role as non-executive director.
Dave Blackwood joined Ithaca Energy's Board in
October 2022 as non-executive director and Chair of the Health,
Safety, Environmental and Security committee, after a distinguished
career spanning 47 years in the global energy sector, including
heading up bp's upstream business in the UK and Norway. Dave brings
considerable leadership and Board experience and a deep
understanding of the oil and gas industry with significant
technical and commercial expertise.
The Company is pleased to announce the proposed
appointment of Yaniv Friedman as Executive Chairman in the coming
weeks, once all formal conditions of his appointment have been
satisfied. Yaniv has significant global executive experience
working in the energy and infrastructure sectors and brings
considerable strategic, commercial, public company and M&A
expertise. Yaniv most recently held the role of CEO of Modiin
Energy LP, an oil and gas partnership listed on the Tel Aviv Stock
Exchange with operations including development projects in the US
as well as exploration offshore Israel. Prior to this, Yaniv served
as Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Newmed Energy LP, Israel's
leading energy partnership in the exploration, development,
production and sale of natural gas. Yaniv further held other senior
executive positions in public and private energy
companies.
Chief
Executive Officer Appointment
Ithaca Energy is delighted to announce that Eni
has proposed the appointment of Luciano Vasques as Chief Executive
Officer, subject to the completion of customary onboarding
processes. Luciano's appointment will become effective on
completion of the Business Combination and he will immediately join
the Ithaca Energy Board. Luciano brings a wealth of executive and
energy industry experience with a career spanning over 30 years
covering a range of leadership, technical and operational roles.
Luciano currently holds the role of Managing Director of Eni UK
Limited and led the recent acquisition and integration of Neptune
Energy into Eni UK's operations and prior to this he held the role
of Head of Central Asia for Eni SpA overseeing interests in two
giant oil and gas fields, Kashagan and Karachaganak. During
Luciano's upstream career he has demonstrated a track record of
successfully overseeing and delivering multibillion dollar
developments and operations across Eni S.p.A.'s global business
that will prove invaluable as the Company embarks on the
development of its high-value greenfield portfolio. Luciano sits on
the steering committee of the North Sea Transition Deal, led by
NSTA.
Iain Lewis will continue to hold the role of
Interim Chief Executive Officer until Luciano's appointment, and on
completion of the Business Combination will return to his role as
Chief Financial Officer.
Chief
Operating Officer Appointment
The Company is also pleased to
announce the appointment of Odin Estensen as Chief Operating
Officer. With more than 35 years' experience in the oil and gas
sector, Odin brings a wealth of operating experience and joins
Ithaca Energy from Neptune Energy where he served as Managing
Director of its Norwegian and UK businesses. Prior to this Odin
held various senior roles at Shell across Europe, the Middle East,
Africa and Asia. Odin will join the Company immediately.
Dave Blackwood, CBE, interim Non-Executive
Chairman, said:
"The Board thanks Gilad for his
strategic insight and leadership over the last four years. The
transformational Business Combination with Eni's UK Business marks
an appropriate time to change the executive leadership of the
Company and we wish him well for the future."
"We are delighted to announce a
number of high-quality Board and Executive Management appointees,
positioning the Company for further success as we move into the
next exciting phase of growth as the largest resource holder in the
UK North Sea following the Business Combination with Eni's UK
Business. The proposed appointment of Yaniv will further support
the Company's international growth aspirations, building on his
demonstrable global commercial and leadership track record in the
sector. Luciano's sector and integration experience will be
critical for the Company as we continue to pursue organic growth
from our high-value development portfolio and successfully deliver
the many growth opportunities of the Business Combination. Lastly,
the appointment of Odin will provide further rigour to our daily
operations to ensure we continue to deliver safe and reliable
operations. The Board looks forward with confidence to working with
Yaniv, Luciano and Odin in their respective new roles."
"On behalf of the Board, I would
also like to take this opportunity to thank Iain Lewis for his
stewardship of the Company as interim Chief Executive Officer,
which role he will continue in until Luciano officially takes
office, upon which Iain will return to his role as Chief Financial
Officer."
Gilad Myerson
commented:
"I am extremely proud of what Ithaca Energy has
achieved during my tenure at the Company. The recent announcement
of the Business Combination with Eni's UK Business, is
transformational and I am pleased to have led the Company through
to this significant milestone."
This announcement contains inside information
for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU)
596/2014 of 16 April 2014 (MAR) as it forms part of domestic law by
virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018
To the extent necessary, information required
to be disclosed under LR 9.6.13 R (1) to (6) in respect of Yaniv
Freidman or Luciano Vasques will be disclosed by way of RIS upon
formal confirmation of their respective appointments.
Enquiries
Notes:
1 Wood Mackenzie, Ithaca Energy (NSAI CPR), Eni UK CPR (prepared
by NSAI dated 25 March 2024) and ERCE CPR, as of 31 December
2023
2 All dividends are
subject to operational performance and commodity prices as well as
Combined Group refinancing and availability of distributable
profits
Note to editors:
About Ithaca Energy plc
Ithaca Energy is a leading UK
independent exploration and production company focused on the UK
North Sea with a strong track record of material value creation. In
recent years, the Company has been focused on growing its portfolio
of assets through both organic investment programmes and
acquisitions and has seen a period of significant M&A driven
growth centred upon two transformational acquisitions in recent
years. Today, Ithaca Energy is one of the largest independent oil
and gas companies in the United Kingdom Continental Shelf (the
"UKCS"), ranking second by resources.
With stakes in six of the ten
largest fields in the UKCS and two of UKCS's largest
pre-development fields, and with energy security currently being a
key focus of the UK Government, the Group believes it can utilise
its significant reserves and operational capabilities to play a key
role in delivering security of domestic energy supply from the
UKCS.
Ithaca Energy serves today's needs
for domestic energy through operating sustainably. The Group
achieves this by harnessing Ithaca Energy's deep operational
expertise and innovative minds to collectively challenge the norm,
continually seeking better ways to meet evolving
demands.
Ithaca Energy's commitment to
delivering attractive and sustainable returns is supported by a
well-defined emissions-reduction strategy with a target of
achieving net zero by 2040.
Ithaca Energy plc was admitted to
trading on the London Stock Exchange (LON: ITH) on 14 November
2022.
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