Executive

Royal Dutch Shell plc soon plans to launch a natural gas-to-liquids (GTL) business in the United States, a company executive said in Houston on Thursday.

Royal Dutch Shell plc is readying the launch of natural gas-to-liquids (GTL) business in the United States, a company executive said in Houston on Thursday.

The board of directors of Range Resources Corp. has approved several management changes in preparation for the transition of CEO John Pinkerton to the role of executive chairman on Jan. 1. Current COO Jeff Ventura previously was named the new CEO. In addition, the board has promoted Ray Walker to senior vice president and COO. Walker is to oversee all of Range’s operations and would continue to lead the company’s environmental, safety, regulatory and best practices programs. Alan Farquharson has been promoted to senior vice president of reservoir engineering and economics. Farquharson is to oversee the corporate reservoir engineering as well as the long-range planning function. Ralph Tijerina has been promoted to vice president of safety and environmental. Mark Whitley, promoted to senior vice president of the Northern Appalachia and Southwest Division, is to continue to oversee operations of the Marcellus Shale along with Range activities in Texas and New Mexico.

Energy imports into the United States and Canada will be “down to almost zero” by 2040, an ExxonMobil Corp. executive said Thursday.

Energy imports into the United States and Canada will be “down to almost zero” by 2040, an ExxonMobil Corp. executive said Thursday.

An exploration well in the eastern deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM) is showing higher-than-expected natural gas pay, an Anadarko Petroleum Corp. executive said last week.

An exploration well in the eastern deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GOM) is showing higher-than-expected natural gas pay, an Anadarko Petroleum Corp. executive said Thursday.

Michael C. Linn, who founded Linn Energy LLC in 2003, is retiring from the company and is stepping down as executive chairman at the end of the year. Linn is to continue to serve as a director. Linn President and CEO Mark E. Ellis is to add the role of chairman to his responsibilities. Under Linn’s leadership, the Houston-based producer became the first publicly traded exploration and production (E&P) limited liability company in 2006 (see Daily GPI, March 9, 2007). The company now has an enterprise value of close to $10 billion with focus areas in the Midcontinent and Permian and Williston basins, as well as Michigan and California — “far more successful than I ever envisioned,” said Linn. Linn Energy grew from a “small company in Pittsburgh, with a few natural gas wells and three employees, to a company that ranks among the largest independent E&P companies in the U.S. and has 800 employees across the nation. Throughout that growth, we have increased our quarterly cash distribution to unitholders by more than 70%,” Linn said.

A coalition of environmental groups has called on the Obama administration to issue an executive order directing the government to adopt as soon as possible the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) subcommittee on shale gas production’s recommendations that apply to federal agencies.