UK Shale Gas: The Engineers' Summit 2016

James Bridge: Chairman of the Process Industries Division, Institution of Mechanical Engineers

Following a mechanical engineering apprenticeship with Hamworthy Engineering in Poole, he specialised in application engineering, focussing on the oil & gas industries, Moving to SPP Pumps in 1978 he took responsibility for diesel and gas engine packages, rising to be General Manager of SPP Offshore. He moved to Caterpillar Power Systems in 1997, specialising in Internet data centres and
hospital UPS systems. Returning to the oil and gas business in 2004, he rose to the rank of Petroleum Business Development Manager. He left Caterpillar in 2013

Jenifer  Baxter CEng, CSci: Head of Energy and the Environment, The Institution of Mechanical Engineers

Jenifer Baxter CEng, CSci joined The Institution of Mechanical Engineers as Head of Energy and the Environment in May 2015. Jenifer is responsible for providing expert guidance and support on all mechanical engineering aspects of energy and the environment, with particular themes this year on waste, heat, water and hydraulic fracturing for shale gas.

Prior to joining IMechE, Jenifer was Head of Enterprise and Innovation at the University of East London, responsible for developing collaborative relationships with businesses, academics and the wider UEL community, delivering social and technological innovation and embedding enterprise into student life at the University. Jenifer has been a Research Project Manager and Lecturer of research methods in the Engineering Department at the University of South Wales specialising in advanced engineering and materials; and before undertaking her PhD in 2009 Jenifer spent six years working for the Welsh Government as a Waste Strategy Advisor.

Jenifer has a PhD from Cardiff University in technological innovation systems examining hydrogen from waste technologies, an MSc in Sustainability, Planning and Environmental Policy and a BEng in Environmental Engineering also from Cardiff University. 

Jenifer is a member of both the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Energy Institute in the UK.

Ken Cronin: Chief Executive, UKOOG

Ken Cronin is the Chief Executive of the newly re-launched trade body UKOOG (UK Onshore Oil and Gas). UKOOG is the representative body for the UK onshore oil and gas industry including exploration, production and storage across both conventional and unconventional sources. The organisation’s objectives are to enhance the profile of the onshore hydrocarbons industry, promote better and more open dialogue with key stakeholders, deliver industry wide initiatives and programmes and to ensure standards in safety, the environment and operations are maintained to the highest possible level. Ken has more than 20 years’ global experience in media, investor and government relations and has worked in and with many companies across the nuclear, renewables, oil and gas and power sectors. Prior to his role at UKOOG, Ken spent 10 years at worldwide communication agency Kreab Gavin Anderson as Head of Global Energy. 

Mike Stephenson: Director of Science and Technology/Chief Scientist, British Geological Survey

Mike Stephenson is Director of Science and Technology/Chief Scientist at the British Geological Survey. He has done research in the Middle East and Asia, including highlights in Oman, Jordan, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. Mike runs the Science Programme at BGS, the UK's national geoscience and data centre, with 520 scientists and technologists. He has professorships at Nottingham and Leicester universities and has published over seventy peer-reviewed papers, while also acting on the editorial boards of several journals, and as Editor-in-Chief of an Elsevier geological journal. His new book 'Shale gas and fracking: the science behind the controversy' was published in February 2015. 

Mark Boult: Director, DNV G

Mark Boult is highly experienced in providing in risk management and analysis support to organisations in a range of industries including oil and gas. He has held a number of management and consulting positions during a career of over 30 years and has international experience having worked overseas in a number of different countries. He was the Manager of the Technical Investigation for the Longford Royal Commission into the Fire and Explosion that occurred at
Esso Facility in Longford, Victoria, Australia. He led, on behalf of the European Commission, the analysis and evaluation of the effects of the practical application of national legislation related to safety and health at work in mineral extraction through drilling (Directive 92/91EC) post the Madcondo accident. Currently Mark is a Director in DNV GL's UK operations with a specific role on continuing the development and growth of the business, building customer relations, leadership
of the unconventional O&G network and oversight of DNV GL’s ERM services in the region. In this role he is supporting risk management in oil and gas companies including; BP, Tullow, Third Energy and E.ON E&P.

John Blaymires : Chief Operating Officer, IGAS Energy

John Blaymires has 29 years of international experience in the oil and gas industry gained at Hess Corporation and Shell International. Before joining IGas, he was Director of Technology Development for Hess based in Houston. 

Nigel Parry: Formerly Well Engineering Team Lead, NEXEN UK LTD

Nigel was Well Engineering Team Lead for Nexen from 2011 until retiring in October 2015. He had been with Nexen since 2006 and was Senior Drilling Engineer and Drilling Superintendent prior to that.  The role of Well Engineering Team Lead focused on Well Integrity, Completions Engineering and UK Management System within Drilling and Completions as well as being the Wells Technical Authority for Nexen.  Nigel was a member of the Well Life Cycle Integrity Guidelines subteam of Oil & Gas UK from 2011 until 2015.

Nigel started working in the North Sea as a Petroleum Engineer with BP.  He then worked for several operators in Aberdeen variously as Senior Drilling Engineer, Drilling Superintendent and Well Examiner before joining Nexen.

Peter  Robinson: Non Executive Director, NRG GROUP

Peter is a Non Executive Director for the NRG Group of Companies and has had over forty years experience in Oil & Gas Well Operations with wide exposure and responsibility within the service sector, UK government departments and offshore platform operations.

Peter graduated with an Honours Degree in Geology and following a period working on exploration rigs as a mud logger, unit chief and data engineer in South  East Asia he joined the UK Department of Energy as a Senior Well Operations Inspector.

He then joined British Gas as an Offshore Installation Manager in the Morecambe Bay Gas Field.

Returning to work in the Department of Energy he became a Principal Inspector then Acting Head of Inspection North Sea for the Petroleum Engineering Division. Following transfer to the Health and Safety Executive Offshore Safety Division he was appointed Deputy Director Operations - and was also seconded to the Field Operations Division as the Area Director for North West England.

Peter has worked for 18 years with the NRG Group of companies.

Donald Dobson BSc, MEI, SPE: Head of Discipline, Well Engineering, Health and Safety Executive

Donald Dobson has 40 years’ experience in drilling engineering both in industry and as industry regulator. Working for BP, his roles included designing wells and planning operations for the company’s global oil and gas exploration programme and assessing new drilling technology. He was co-author of BP’s drilling manual. In his current role in HSE, he acts as technical authority for well engineering and operations. He was a lead member of the team that developed the current regulations on well integrity. He is a member of several industry work groups, including those producing guidance on well integrity and well abandonment.

Peter  Robinson: Non Executive Director, NRG Group

Peter Robinson graduated with an Honours Degree in Geology and following a period working on exploration rigs as a mud logger, unit chief and data engineer in South East Asia he joined the UK Department of Energy as a Senior Well Operations Inspector. Returning to work in the Department of Energy he became a Principal Inspector then Acting Head of Inspection North Sea for the Petroleum Engineering Division. Following transfer to the Health and Safety Executive Offshore Safety Division he was appointed Deputy Director Operations - and was also seconded to the Field Operations Division as the Area Director for North West England.

Adrian  Finn: Process Technology Manager, Costain

Adrian Finn is Process Technology Manager at Costain, Manchester, UK with responsibility for process technology selection, development and commercialization, proposal management and supervision of feasibility studies, Pre-FEEDs and FEEDs. He has thirty two years with Costain, focused mainly on gas processing. He has authored fifty technical papers and holds nearly twenty granted patents in gas processing. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering and Fuel Technology and a Master’s degree in Integrated Design of Chemical Plant. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, a Chartered Engineer in the UK and a Member of both the Management and Programme Committees of Gas Processors Association (GPA) Europe.

DR Tony Grayling: Director of Sustainable Business and Development, Environment Agency

Tony Grayling leads the Environment Agency’s work on some major cross-cutting issues including climate change, energy, health, sustainable development and environmental incident management. He is currently also leading the agency’s work on onshore oil and gas. He was previously a special adviser to David Miliband and Hilary Benn, successive Secretaries of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, helping to design the UK’s Climate Change Act 2008. From 2002 to 2006 he was an associate director and head of the sustainability team at the Institute for Public Policy Research, a UK think tank, which he joined in 1999 as a research fellow. He was a special adviser to the Minister for Transport, Gavin Strang, from 1997-98 during the development of the UK governments 1998 transport white paper and before that a researcher successively to Labour MPs Ron Davies and Anne Campbell. Educated at Thorpe St Andrew School, Norwich and Fitzwilliam College, he has a first class degree in natural sciences and a PhD in plat sciences both from Cambridge University.

Graham Dean: Managing Director, ReachCSG

Graham Dean is managing Director of ReachCSG. ReachCSG is focused on Cumbrian & Scottish Gas.  ReachCSG, together with the Licence operator INEOS, has a large PEDL licence in the Scottish central belt.  ReachCSG also has licences onshore and offshore Barrow-in-Furness for gas exploration offshore from onshore. Graham has had a long undistinguished career in the oil and gas business.  He is a petrophysicist and a petroleum engineer.  Prior to joining Reach, Graham had a Business Development role at Centrica where he gained a wealth of A&D and negotiating experience, always unsuccessful.

Kenneth  McIntosh: United Kingdom, Oil and Gas Industry

Kenneth McIntosh has spent 18 years working in the offshore UK oil & Gas industry for numerous major operators including Marathon Oil, Shell and Statoil.   Kenneth has worked in well design and construction, including integrity monitoring and has also led an offshore Frac campaign as Team Leader.