Ed Willett Exploration Advisor: Geoscientist, Strategist Consultancy Services - ‘Spotlight On’: Ed’s career at a glance. 38+ Years of Experience Focussed on global exploration in technical, management and Executive roles where he was responsible for geoscience evaluation projects, devising corporate strategies and managing and leading geoscience and geophysical operations teams. Exploration Strategy & Discoveries Responsible for the technical work that led to several discoveries, including the Sangu gas Field in Bangladesh and the string of discoveries offshore Cameroon. Developed the Exploration strategy that led to the discovery of the Mangala field in Rajasthan Global Project Leadership Extensive global experience across Africa, Asia, the Far East and latterly Suriname where he has executed challenging projects involving a combination of demanding geophysical operations, intricate geoscience analysis and high level networking with national oil companies and local Government officials including serving Ministers and Presidents. Technical & Strategic Advisory Now provides independent advisory services with an emphasis on 1. geoscience project peer review, oversight and supervision; 2. team leadership, mentoring and coaching; 3. strategic direction and guidance; most recently with Suriname’s state energy company, Staatsolie. Standardisation & Process Improvement Champions consistent, standardised and ultimately defendable procedures for portfolio and prospect volumetrics and risk evaluation to enable informed strategic investment decisions – initiated processes at Cairn that were developed further at Bowleven and most recently guided the Staatsolie technical team in their evaluation of the Shallow Offshore acreage Industry Knowledge & Mentorship Combines deep technical knowledge with excellent people skills to support geoscience teams through mentoring, coaching, peer reviews and project oversight. Ed’s career spans over 38 years, beginning in 1985 with Carless Exploration, working primarily on UK basins. He joined Cairn Energy in 1989 where he gained extensive international experience particularly in the Far East, Asia and South East Asia over an 18 year period; before moving to Bowleven in 2007 where he worked mainly on Sub-Saharan African projects until going independent in 2017. Some of his career highlights include: Executive Management & Leadership A relationship orientated professional with excellent people management and leadership skills especially in multi-cultural environments with a successful track record of leading globally diverse teams across the UK, Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Kenya and Suriname. Can you provide an overview of your career in the energy sector? I have over 38 years of industry experience in exploration geoscience globally in technical, management, and leadership roles. I started my career in 1985 with Carless Exploration, working primarily on the Weald Basin, onshore UK, but also the UKCS, Dorset, and East Midlands Basins, running geophysical operations and conducting seismic interpretation. In 1989, I moved to Cairn Energy, also working on the Weald Basin and UKCS assets. Cairn then expanded its portfolio overseas in the early ’90s, and over the next decade, I gained substantial global experience in senior technical and leadership roles, working in Vietnam (the South Con Son and Mekong Basins) and the Taranaki Basin in New Zealand. Then across India, Nepal, and Bangladesh in the Krishna- Godavari and Bengal Basins, Assam and Tripura, Rajasthan, the Himalayan Foredeep, and the Cambay Gulf. During this period, my technical evaluation led to the discovery of the Sangu Gas field offshore Bangladesh, and I defined the Rajasthan Exploration strategy that ultimately led to the Mangala discovery. I also had responsibility for technical standards and oversight for Cairn’s entire global asset portfolio and introduced a standardised Prospect Evaluation procedure to ensure consistency of approach to prospect volumetrics and risking by the various technical teams, thus allowing the Board to make unbiased yet informed investment decisions. In 2007, I moved to Bowleven and was appointed to the Board as Exploration Director but maintained a hands-on approach to all technical evaluation work, leading peer reviews of all key investment decisions. Inheriting a licence offshore Cameroon, we drilled a string of nine successful wells, stimulating renewed industry interest in this part of the world. I led the strategic expansion of the business portfolio into the East African rift system and gained significant technical knowledge and experience in Kenya and Zambia, meeting key political leaders. Over this period, I was also screening new venture opportunities across Africa and gained significant technical experience in Gabon, Angola, Namibia, and the MSGBC countries, specifically Senegal, onshore and offshore. In 2017, I went independent, providing technical and strategic advisory services. I have been deeply involved in the evaluation of the Guyana-Suriname basin—initially appointed as Geoscience Advisor to the Staatsolie technical team between 2019 and 2021, and latterly involved as part of the Staatsolie- Envoi Bid Round team, where we have successfully delivered the last three Suriname bid rounds. SPOTLIGHT SERIES: ED WILLETT My initiative to standardise the Cairn Group portfolio and prospect evaluation procedures led to a strategic U-turn and a buyback of the Bangladesh assets from Shell. In Cameroon, I inherited a licence in an area perceived by the industry as gas-prone, where (at the time) there was no gas market. I initiated a plan to acquire all available technical data in the area, which we integrated into a new basin model and prospect inventory, and then drilled a string of nine oil/condensate discoveries. In 2020, I devised the processes and procedures for the upcoming Suriname Bid Rounds with an emphasis on creating a simple, hurdle-free, and affordable gateway system that was adopted by Staatsolie for their last three Bid Rounds, leading to awards in each round and now with nearly 50% of the available acreage licensed to international oil companies. Can you share an example of a project where your leadership significantly impacted the outcome? Essentially, my 38 years of perspective, insight, and experience in exploring for and finding hydrocarbons. Having worked in technical, management, and leadership roles, I have a unique insight into the overall investment process and exploration business cycle. As Jan de Jager writes in his thoughtful piece in the recent GeoExpro journal (Vol21, 5 2024), I also firmly believe that exploration evaluation is as much an art as it is a science. Modern geoscience has some wonderful tools at its disposal now, and in part because of this, the geoscience community has become, perhaps by necessity, grouped into specialists, each wonderfully gifted in their own arena, using incredible software to analyse and quantify a particular geological or geophysical phenomenon. However, in isolation, the outputs are not always consistent with other datasets or studies, and it requires experience to stand back, assimilate, integrate, and challenge these individual scientific studies to ensure that ultimately the best investment decisions are made when it comes to investing the millions of USD required in the drilling of a particular prospect. This is where the art comes in, and that only comes with significant experience and perspective. What unique value do you bring to companies in the energy sector, particularly in a consultancy role? SPOTLIGHT SERIES: ED WILLETT The global environment and future generations depend upon countries adopting viable and achievable energy transition plans that should be politically neutral and thus defined and managed by bodies of experts that are independent of the short-term machinations and drivers of national political systems. These energy transition policies need to recognise that hydrocarbons will enable the transition, and ongoing investment in oil and gas exploration will be required to ensure sufficient energy resources are in place to allow countries to transition to “new energy.” Hydrocarbons will thus be required for some decades yet, and I envisage my role to assist in finding these “last resources” by giving back my knowledge through advising, guiding, coaching, and mentoring the geoscience teams involved, whether within state or private entities. What is your vision for the future of the energy sector, and how do you plan to contribute to its evolution? 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