Newfield Exploration Co. President and COO David F. Schaible, 46, died Saturday following a brief battle with cancer. He leaves his wife Tina and four children. CEO David A. Trice, who will assume the role of president, said Schaible joined the company when it was founded in 1988, and he joined the board of directors in 2002. When he joined Newfield at the age of 28, Schaible was the youngest member of the founding group of employees. He served as executive vice president, Operations and Acquisitions from November 2004 through July. He also served as vice president, Acquisitions and Development from 1995-2004; manager, Acquisitions and Development from 1992-1995; coordinator, Acquisitions and Marketing from 1991-1992; and as petroleum engineer from 1989 to 1991. Before joining Newfield, Schaible was senior production engineer in the Eastern Gulf Division of Tenneco Oil Exploration and Production Co. He earned a degree in petroleum engineering from Marietta College, GA. He also was active in the Society of Petroleum Engineers.
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Lay’s Autopsy Reveals Severe Heart Disease
Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay, who had suffered two previous heart attacks before he collapsed and died on July 5, suffered from severe heart disease, according to an autopsy released by the Pitkin County, CO, Sheriff’s Office. Lay’s three main coronary arteries were more than 90% blocked, the autopsy revealed.
People
Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn’s energy adviser, Richard “Dick” Burdette, 61, died last Wednesday from a heart attack. Burdette’s funeral was held Monday in Carson City, NV. A U.S. Naval Academy graduate, Burdette was named energy adviser in December 2003 after serving five years at the Nevada Public Utilities Commission as its manager of resource and market analysis. He was a consultant in several regulated industries, worked as a aide to a U.S. senator and was a public affairs officer and acting deputy assistant secretary in the U.S. Transportation Department.
Industry Mourns the Passing of Veteran Gas Industry Leader Dick Sharples
Dick Sharples, a well-known and much-respected member of the natural gas community, died suddenly of cancer early Thursday. Sharples, an executive with Anadarko Petroleum for many years, retired from that company last year and took over as executive director of the new Center for Liquefied Natural Gas (CLNG).
People
Lawrence G. Rawl, 76, former chairman and CEO of Exxon Corp., died on Sunday in Fort Worth. Current ExxonMobil CEO Lee Raymond said that Rawl “was a strong leader for our company and the petroleum industry and a true friend. We all mourn his passing and express our deepest sympathy to his family for their loss.” Born in 1928 in New Jersey, Rawl enlisted and served in the U.S. Marine Corps at the end of World War II. Following his military service, Rawl entered the University of Oklahoma and received a degree in petroleum engineering. He immediately joined Humble Oil & Refining Co., Exxon’s predecessor company. In 1980, he joined Exxon Corp. and was elected chairman in 1987. He held the top posts until his retirement in May 1993.
People
Jerome “Jerry” James McGrath, 81, a retired former president of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA), died on Tuesday of cancer at his home in Chevy Chase, MD. McGrath served as an executive with INGAA for 20 years. After an extensive career as a natural gas industry lawyer, he was employed by INGAA in 1968 as executive vice president, general counsel and secretary. In 1978, he was promoted to president and served in the capacity until his retirement from the association in 1988. His tenure included leading INGAA and its interstate pipeline members through the challenges associated with the wellhead decontrol of natural gas and the beginnings of the pipeline industry’s transition from merchant sellers of natural gas to unbundled transportation providers. Mirant announced that effective May 3 M. Michele Burns, 46, will be joining the company as executive vice president and CFO. Burns will assume lead responsibility for the company’s financial restructuring. She will report to Marce Fuller, Mirant’s CEO. Burns brings more than 23 years of experience in corporate finance and accounting to Mirant, having served as executive vice president and CFO at Delta Air Lines and as partner at Arthur Andersen LLP. “As one of the nation’s most well-respected CFOs, she has the experience and skill to lead our financial restructuring, and play a key role in enabling Mirant to emerge from Chapter 11,” said Fuller. In her career at Delta, Burns is credited with stabilizing the company’s finances immediately after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, then leveraging Delta’s business unit, technology and supply chain strategies to reduce costs by over $2.5 billion.
Unocal COO Ling Dies Unexpectedly; CEO to Assume Responsibilities
Timothy H. Ling, 46, the president and chief operating officer of Unocal Corp., died suddenly on Wednesday, the company said. He had been a member of Unocal’s board of directors since 2000 and also was a member of the company’s management committee.
Seven Die in Toronto Gas Explosion
Seven persons died as a result of an April 24 rupture of a natural gas distribution pipeline outside of a small strip mall in Toronto, according to the Toronto Fire Marshal’s Office.
eNymex Died, But Its Soul Lives on in Access
eNymex, as originally conceived is dead, but the idea of providing over-the-counter (OTC) energy products lives on through Nymex Access, a spokeswoman for the New York Mercantile Exchange said Monday in an interview with NGI.
Ex-Enron Vice Chairman Dies in Apparent Suicide
J. Clifford Baxter, 43, who resigned as vice chairman of Enron Corp. in May 2001, has died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was found in a locked vehicle in Sugar Land, a Houston suburb, about 2:30 a.m. Friday, and his death initially was ruled a suicide, but Friday afternoon, an autopsy was ordered. Baxter went to work for Enron in 1991 and eventually became chairman and CEO of Enron North America. He was named Enron’s chief strategy officer in June 2000 and was named vice chairman in October 2000. He also served as the lead negotiator in Enron’s purchase of Portland General Electric in 1997.