Gary Benford
Summary
Experienced oil and gas professional. Career progression through Senior Drilling Engineer, Drilling Superintendent and Drilling/Well Engineering Manager with a total of 36 years of diverse international, exploration, development and project management experience. Wide ranging career with a proven project delivery track record in drilling operations and well engineering design/construction through cross-functional expertise in drilling, completions, facilities, production operations, finance and HSE. Well versed in onshore and offshore operations including brownfield re-developments, abandonment and decommissioning.
Overview
38
38
years of professional experience
Work history
Drilling Superintendent
Basra Energy Company Ltd
Basra, Iraq
2023.04 - Current
- Drilling Superintendent, Rumaila Operating Organisation, Rumaila Oilfield, southern Iraq
- Drilling operations and safety management of ROO’s turnkey Drilling Contractors
- Operations management of 6 turnkey drilling rigs delivering 45 wells per year
- Drive drilling operational safety performance through the contractor management team and rig site personnel
- Conduct incident investigations and ensure close out of actions and implementation of Lessons Learnt
- Ensure contractor compliance with ROO Drilling standards & Safety standards
- Improve Contractor SOP’s and standards to optimise ROO’s turnkey well construction process.
Drilling and Well Engineering Manager
Dagang Zhaodong Oil Company of PetroChina
Tianjin, Peoples Republic of China
2015.04 - 2021.01
- Management team position - management of well engineering design, well construction and drilling operations for Zhaodong field, offshore Bohai Bay, PRC during and after transfer of Operatorship to PetroChina
- Established Operatorship transfer process for well engineering design and drilling operations management (handover planning and execution).
- Coaching and mentoring of new PetroChina senior management team
- Advanced safety management to achieve 3 years without LTI
Drilling and Well Engineering Manager
Roc Oil (Bohai) Company
Beijing, Peoples Republic of China
2010.12 - 2015.03
- Management of well engineering design, well construction and offshore drilling operations for Zhaodong field (20 wells per annum, high risk, complex anti-collision management)
- Complex field with 60 discrete reservoirs requiring sand control and artificial lift, 315 well development drilling programme, 6 platforms
- $130 MM annual drilling capital budget preparation and management
- Continuously improved operational safety record to achieve 5 years without LTI
- Management of PetroChina drilling contractor, rig equipment maintenance planning and verification audits
- Recruitment, development and management of 30 departmental staff
- Set minimum operational performance standards and procedures
- Monitor drilling performance and produce benchmarking metrics. Consistently performed in top quartile within peer group.
- Development of Company's Asset Integrity Management and Well Engineering Management System
- Management and supervision of 35 separate contracts and tender processes with 3rd party service providers.
Drilling Superintendent
Regal Petroleum Ltd
Kiev, Ukraine
2008.08 - 2010.11
- Management of well design and construction of 70 well development plan in Ukraine
- Prepared $250 MM budget for onshore gas field to drill deep, tight gas condensate wells to 6,200m TVD
- Well design review and implementation of multi-rig programme with limited infrastructure
- Rig contractor auditing (SMS and PMS)
- Training and mentoring of 20 local Ukrainian staff
- Established management and supervision of all contractor tender processes, programmes and budgets.
Drilling Superintendent
TNK-BP/RUSIA Petroleum JSC
Moscow & Irkutsk, Russia
2005.01 - 2008.07
- Project management team drilling ERD development wells in Kovykta gas condensate field, onshore eastern Siberia
- Management of well engineering design and drilling operations
- Specify permanent well and rig equipment (tendering process)
- Development of national Russian rig contractor relationships to improve operational efficiency and safety management
- Prepared $100 MM budget to drill first 6 horizontal wells using upgraded Russian drilling rigs
- Team coordinator for TNK-BP RUSIA Petroleum joint venture
- Prepare budgets/AFE's, manage and coordinate 3rd party service contractors
- Training and mentoring of local Russian staff.
Drilling Superintendent
UzPEC Ltd
Tashkent, Uzbekistan
2003.01 - 2005.01
- Management of onshore drilling, completions and workover operations for horizontal sour oil and gas wells in fractured carbonate reservoirs. Reduced operational costs by 25%.
- Management of Chinese drilling contractor, well site construction and remote drilling operations
- Rig equipment auditing and upgrades
- Blow out contingency planning and preparation.
Senior Drilling Engineer/Drilling Supervisor
Burlington Resources Ltd
Hassi Messaoud, Algeria
2002.06 - 2002.12
- Performed well design and construction for 6 land exploration and development wells in Block 402 and 405.
Senior Drilling Engineer
Premier - Kufpec Pakistan BV
Islamabad, Pakistan
2002.01 - 2002.05
- Prepared well engineering designs and drilling programmes for land exploration gas project
- Reduced well costs by 15%
Senior Drilling Engineer
Salyan Oil Ltd
Baku, Azerbaijan
2000.01 - 2001.12
- Well engineering design for deep/high pressure exploration/development wells on shore Azerbaijan
- Prepared $50MM drilling budget and AFE's
- Improved efficiency of field operations by establishing and implementing SOP's
- Planned supervision of coiled tubing operations in high pressure development wells
- Designed slim-hole single and multi-lateral re-entries from existing old well bores
Senior Drilling Engineer
Premier Exploration Pakistan Ltd
Islamabad, Pakistan
1999.07 - 1999.12
- Well design/construction of land exploration/appraisal gas wells in fractured carbonates
- Optimised remote area operations, well site construction and logistics management.
- Drove continuous efficiency and cost improvements, developing well designs that resulted in $500K cost saving per well.
Drilling Supervisor
Premier Petroleum Myanmar Limited
Offshore, Myanmar
1998.01 - 1999.06
- Executed $300 MM budget for development of Yetagun gas field
- Initiated development drilling programme and rig mobilisation
- Offshore supervision/construction of 8 ERD development wells.
Senior Drilling Engineer
British Gas plc
Islamabad, Pakistan
1997.01 - 1997.12
- Land exploration drilling in Baluchistan Province
- Prepared well designs and drilling programmes for wildcat gas wells
- Successfully reduced exploration drilling costs by 50%.
Operations Drilling Engineer
Premier Exploration Pakistan Ltd
Islamabad, Pakistan
1996.04 - 1996.12
- Well design and operations support for land exploration wells in Sindh Province
- Drilling programme preparation, well testing operations and contractor management.
Drilling Engineer
Conoco (UK) Ltd
Aberdeen, UK
1990.04 - 1996.04
- Various assignments working on fields in UKNS
- Designed first horizontal wells drilled in Carboniferous formation of SNS for Murdoch gas field.
Mining Engineer
General Mining Union Corporation (Gencor) Ltd
Welkom, RSA
1988.01 - 1988.12
- Hard rock gold mining, Beatrix Gold Mine, Orange Free State, RSA.
Education
Master of Engineering - Petroleum Engineering
Heriot Watt University
Edinburgh1990
Bachelor of Engineering - Mining Engineering
Camborne School of Mines
Camborne1989
Skills
- Leadership
- Strong communicator across all levels
- Drilling operations management (land and offshore)
- Rig contractor management
- Rig equipment auditing and maintenance planning
- Well engineering management
- Well design and construction (Well Engineering Management systems and equipment selection)
- Completion design
- Project management
- High-value Budget preparation and management
- HSE management systems
- Process Safety and risk assessment
- Contractor management and tendering processes
- Problem solver
- Attention to detail
Professional training
A wide array of management courses and technical training for offshore and land drilling operations, well design, completions, workovers, wireline operations, artificial lift, sand control, well testing, directional/horizontal drilling, well control, process safety, HSE management systems, risk analysis.
Timeline
Drilling Superintendent
Basra Energy Company Ltd
2023.04 - Current
Drilling and Well Engineering Manager
Dagang Zhaodong Oil Company of PetroChina
2015.04 - 2021.01
Drilling and Well Engineering Manager
Roc Oil (Bohai) Company
2010.12 - 2015.03
Drilling Superintendent
Regal Petroleum Ltd
2008.08 - 2010.11
Drilling Superintendent
TNK-BP/RUSIA Petroleum JSC
2005.01 - 2008.07
Drilling Superintendent
UzPEC Ltd
2003.01 - 2005.01
Senior Drilling Engineer/Drilling Supervisor
Burlington Resources Ltd
2002.06 - 2002.12
Senior Drilling Engineer
Premier - Kufpec Pakistan BV
2002.01 - 2002.05
Senior Drilling Engineer
Salyan Oil Ltd
2000.01 - 2001.12
Senior Drilling Engineer
Premier Exploration Pakistan Ltd
1999.07 - 1999.12
Drilling Supervisor
Premier Petroleum Myanmar Limited
1998.01 - 1999.06
Senior Drilling Engineer
British Gas plc
1997.01 - 1997.12
Operations Drilling Engineer
Premier Exploration Pakistan Ltd
1996.04 - 1996.12
Drilling Engineer
Conoco (UK) Ltd
1990.04 - 1996.04
Mining Engineer
General Mining Union Corporation (Gencor) Ltd
1988.01 - 1988.12
Master of Engineering - Petroleum Engineering
Heriot Watt University
Bachelor of Engineering - Mining Engineering
Camborne School of Mines