Energy Capital Conference Speakers

Mark Ammerman, Industry Head, Energy, U.S., Latin America and U.K./Europe, Scotiabank Global Banking & Markets

Mark Ammerman is the managing director and Houston office head for Scotiabank’s energy-banking operation. In addition, Ammerman co-chairs Scotiabank’s energy-business operating committee overseeing the bank’s global efforts. He joined the Bank of Nova Scotia in 1987 and was tasked with marketing oil and gas expertise to U.S. and Canadian cross-border clients before becoming involved in the M&A business as a managing director of Scotia Capital. Ammerman was recruited in 2002 to help build and lead Scotia’s energy business, including the acquisition of Waterous & Co. and UBS AG, and the upcoming acquisition of Howard Weil. He graduated in economics and finance from Houston Baptist University. In 2006, he completed the advanced graduate leadership program of the Richard Ivey School of Business at Canada’s Western Ontario University.

Mark Bononi, Senior Analyst, Vedanta Energy Fund

Mark S. Bononi has analyzed various aspects of the energy industry and companies for more than 20 years, with an emphasis on the oil and gas E&P segment. Prior to his position at Vedanta, he worked as a sell-side research analyst for several investment banking firms, including ABN Amro and PaineWebber, formulating integrated oil company investment recommendations. Before shifting his career to the financial-services industry, Bononi worked for five years in Washington, D.C., as an energy policy analyst for both public- and private-sector agencies, including the U.S. Department of Energy and the American Gas Association. He holds an MBA from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and an AB degree in international economics from Georgetown University.

Moderator: Bruce Bullock, Director, Maguire Energy Institute

Bruce Bullock, director of the Maguire Energy Institute in Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business since 2007, is the author of numerous articles on energy issues, technology and economics, and the author of the Houston Chronicle guest blog, “Barrels and BTUs.” Prior to joining the institute, Bullock was director of corporate communications for FMC Technologies Inc. Previously, while at Atlantic Richfield Co. (ARCO), he analyzed pending federal and state legislation and regulation, and drafted and helped enact energy tax-incentive legislation in several states. Bullock holds a master’s in public affairs from the University of Texas’ Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and a B.A. in economics and political science from SMU.

Bill Cooper, President, Center for Liquefied Natural Gas

Bill Cooper is president of the Center for Liquefied Natural Gas (CLNG), a Washington-based trade association of LNG producers, shippers, terminal operators and developers, and energy trade associations. Cooper has two decades of experience in various aspects of the energy industry, having served in both the public and private sectors. Prior to his full-time capacity as president of CLNG, he was a partner in the law office of Hunton & Williams LLP, and counsel to the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee. Earlier in his career, he was general counsel for a natural gas utility company.

Jerrit Coward, President, Oil and Gas Segment, Willbros Group Inc.

Jerrit M. Coward, president of the oil and gas segment for energy-infrastructure construction firm Willbros Group Inc., previously was president of the upstream oil and gas segment. He joined Willbros in 2002 as a project manager and was responsible for the company’s Nigerian operations, overseeing the discontinuation and sale of these interests. Prior to joining Willbros, Coward worked for Global Industries as a project manager, operations manager and commercial manager. His career has focused on the oil and gas industry, including execution of international projects and long-term foreign assignments in Nigeria and Mexico. He holds a B.S. in engineering from Texas A&M at Galveston.

Gary Evans, Chairman and CEO, Magnum Hunter Resources Corp.

Gary C. Evans, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Magnum Hunter Resources Corp., previously founded and was chairman and CEO of Magnum Hunter Resources Inc., which he sold to Cimarex Energy Co. in 2005 for $2.2 billion. Evans is also chairman and CEO of GreenHunter Energy Inc., which acquired his renewable energy company Wind Hunter Energy LLC in 2006, and he is as an individual trustee of TEL Offshore Trust and the lead director of biotechnology company Novavax Inc. Evans was recognized by Ernst & Young as the Southwest Area 2004 Entrepreneur of the Year for the Energy Sector and was subsequently inducted into the World Hall of Fame for Ernst & Young Entrepreneurs. He also serves on the board of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University.

Dr. Peter R. Hartley, Professor and Baker Institute Fellow, Rice University

Peter R. Hartley, Ph.D., is the George and Cynthia Mitchell Chair and a professor of economics at Rice University. He is also a Rice scholar of energy economics for the Baker Institute. Hartley has worked for more than 25 years on energy economics issues, focusing originally on electricity, but also including natural gas, oil, coal, nuclear and renewable energy. He has also published research on theoretical and applied issues in money and banking, business cycles and international finance. He joined Rice University as an associate professor of economics in 1986 after serving as an assistant professor of economics at Princeton University from 1980 to 1986. And, he also has worked for the Priorities Review Staff, and later the economic division of the Prime Minister’s department in the Australian government. Hartley completed his B.A. with honors in mathematics and his master’s degree in economics at The Australian National University. He received his Ph.D. in economics at The University of Chicago. Hartley is the current president of the U.S. Association for Energy Economics. His publications include co-authoring the chapters "The Baker Institute World Gas Trade Model" and "Political and Economic Influences on the Future World Market for Natural Gas" in the book "Natural Gas and Geopolitics: From 1970 to 2040."

Forrest Hoglund, Chairman and CEO, SeaOne Maritime Corp.

Forrest Hoglund, chairman and chief executive officer of SeaOne Maritime Corp., an LNG transportation company, has had a distinguished career in the North American and international oil and gas industry, including non-executive chairman of Forest Oil Corp. from 2003-2008 and as chairman of EOG Resources Inc. from 1987-1999. He also recently was chairman and CEO of Arctic Resources Co. Ltd., a gas pipeline company. He began his career in 1956 with Humble Oil Co., which became Exxon Corp., where he was vice president of natural gas until 1977, and was president and CEO of Texas Oil & Gas Corp. until its sale in 1987 to U.S. Steel Corp. He received his mechanical engineering degree from the University of Kansas and served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and in the U.S. Army Reserves.

John McNabb II, Vice Chairman, Investment Banking, Duff & Phelps Corp.

John T. McNabb, II is vice chairman of investment banking for Duff & Phelps Corp., a leading global independent provider of financial advisory and investment banking services. McNabb has served on the board of seven public companies listed on major exchanges. He is a shareholder and chairman of the board of Willbros Group and a shareholder and lead director of Continental Resources Inc. He is also a shareholder and director of Premier Natural Resources and Miocene Energy LLC. In addition, McNabb is an emeritus member of the board of visitors of the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and a member and former chairman of the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston.

Dick Morris, Presidential Political Strategist and Author

One of today's most outspoken political consultants and a Fox News contributor, Morris engineered President Clinton's stunning comeback re-election in 1996. Called "the most influential private citizen in America" by Time magazine, he handled the winning campaigns of more than thirty U.S. senators and governors as well as the successful campaigns of presidents or prime ministers of ten countries. His books include "Revolt! – How to Defeat Obama and Repeal His Socialist Agenda – A Patriot’s Guide", "Outrage", "Fleeced", "Off with their Heads", "Take Back America", "Rewriting History" and "Because He Could".

Ed Morse, Managing Director and Global Head, Commodities Research, Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

Dr. Edward L. Morse, managing director and global head of commodities research at Citigroup Global Markets Inc., is the author of the new report “Energy 2020: North America as the New Middle East”. Morse taught international relations at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, was a senior research fellow at the council on foreign relations, was with the U.S. state department as deputy assistant secretary of state for international energy policy, and was the U.S. representative at the IEA for presidents Carter and Reagan. He then became director of international affairs for Phillips Petroleum Co., co-founder and managing director of PFC Energy, president of Petroleum Intelligence Weekly, a senior executive for Hess Energy Trading Co., chief energy economist for Lehman Brothers, and head of commodities research for Credit Suisse. He received his B.A. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins University and his Ph.D. from Princeton University.

Moderator: John Olson, Equity Investor and Retired Managing Partner, Houston Energy Partners

John E. Olson’s acclaimed 35-year career as an award-winning sell-side analyst began at Smith Barney & Co. and included Goldman Sachs, First Boston, Drexel Burnham and Merrill Lynch & Co., from which he was fired in 1988 for calling Enron on its fiscal smoke and mirrors. From there, he joined Sanders Morris Harris as head of research and later, at SMH Capital, he became head of its energy hedge fund, 2003 Houston Energy Partners, where he managed up to $160 million for 112 high-net-worth clients until year-end 2010. Now semi-retired, Olson is the founder of the National Association of Petroleum Investment Analysts. He received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Wharton Graduate School. He served in the U.S. Army-Aviation and the Air National Guard.

Marty Phillips, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, EnCap Investments LP

D. Martin (Marty) Phillips is a co-founder and managing partner of energy-private-equity firm EnCap Investments LP that has invested approximately $5.5 billion in 175 different oil and gas companies in the past 20 years. Previously, Phillips was a senior vice president in the energy-banking group of NationsBank in Dallas. He began his career in 1978 with Republic Bank and held various senior energy banking positions in Denver and Houston. He received his MBA and B.S. degrees from Louisiana State University and is a member of the LSU College of Business Hall of Distinction. Phillips also attended the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University.

Tom Ward, Chairman and CEO, SandRidge Energy Inc.

Tom L. Ward, chairman and chief executive officer, founded U.S. onshore- and offshore-focused SandRidge Energy Inc. in 2006 and, additionally, was president from December 2006 to January 2011. Prior to forming SandRidge, he was a co-founder and president and chief operating officer of Chesapeake Energy Corp. from 1989 until February 2006. From February 2006 until June 2006, Ward managed his private investments. He graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a B.B.A. in petroleum land management. He is also a member of the board of trustees of Anderson University in Anderson, Indiana, and of the economic advisory council of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.

Moderator: Bill Weidner, President and CEO, Weidner Advisors

William (Bill) Weidner, president and chief executive officer of Connecticut-based Weidner Advisors, led Weidner & Co., an oil and gas advisory service to utilities, insurance companies and private oil and gas companies and individual investors, through a merger with Cameron Smith's COSCO Capital Management LLC in 1997. In 2008, COSCO was sold to Rodman & Renshaw, forming The Rodman Energy Group, which Weidner co-led until 2011. He began his oil and gas career in 1980 as a geologist for major oil companies in the Gulf of Mexico and Appalachian Basin, and entered oil and gas finance in 1987 when joining the commercial-lending group at Bank of New England in Boston, and then the oil and gas investment management upstart, Resource Investors Management Co., where he managed investment partnerships.

Kent Wilkinson, VP, Natural Gas Ventures, Chesapeake NG Ventures Corp.

Kent Wilkinson leads the Chesapeake NG Ventures Corp. investment team that is responsible for finding, championing, funding and implementing technology and infrastructure that increase demand for natural gas in the U.S. He is also accountable for Peake Fuel Solutions LLC, and manages the company’s investments in Clean Energy Fuels Corp. and Sundrop Fuels Inc. He joined Chesapeake in 2006 and previously was manager, midstream system development, and director, business strategy and development. Prior to joining Chesapeake, Wilkinson worked in the midstream segment of the natural gas industry and as an engineering consultant. He received his MBA and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Oklahoma. He is also on the board of Wireless Seismic.

Floyd Wilson, Chairman, President and CEO, Halcon Resources Corp.

Floyd Wilson is chairman, president and chief executive officer of Halcon Resources Corp., which was formed in early 2012 from a reverse merger with RAM Energy Resources Inc. and with direct investments by management, EnCap Investments and Liberty Energy Holdings. Previously, Wilson founded Petrohawk Energy Corp. in 2004 and took it to a $15.1-billion sale to BHP Billiton Ltd. in 2011. Prior to founding Petrohawk, Wilson grew Hugoton Energy Corp., which was sold to Chesapeake Energy Corp. in 1998, and 3Tec Energy Corp., which was sold to Plains Exploration & Production Co. in 2003. Wilson serves on the Dean’s Executive Board of the University of Houston’s C.T. Bauer College of Business.

Bill Arend, Regional Manager, Oracle

Bill Arend has spent the last 17 years helping companies leverage software and technology to improve operations and financial performance. He leads the South Texas and Louisiana region for Oracle’s North America applications group. Prior to his role at Oracle, Arend managed Microsoft’s business solutions partners serving the Houston. Outside of Oracle, he serves in leadership positions in a variety of local organizations including the advisory board for BioHouston, National Association Corporate Directors and the Houston Technology Center. In addition he is a member of the board for the Baylor University Bear Foundation. He earned a B.B.A. in marketing with a minor in information technology from Baylor University.

Sylvia K. Barnes, Managing Director, Head of Oil & Gas Corporate and Investment Banking, KeyBanc Capital Markets

Sylvia Barnes joined KeyBanc Capital Markets as head of oil and gas investment and corporate banking in October 2011 with over 20 years of financial experience and a background in engineering. Her prior experience includes executive and management positions at Madison Williams, Merrill Lynch/Petrie Parkman & Co., Enron Energy Services, Nesbitt Burns Securities and Bank of Montreal. Barnes began her career as a reservoir engineer for a subsidiary of Exxon, and was a licensed petroleum engineer. She received a B.S. in mechanical engineering from University of Manitoba, and an MBA from York University. Barnes is a board member of the Houston Energy Finance Group and Chairperson of the Santa Maria Hostel Foundation.

Jim Burgoyne, Managing Director, Natural Resources, GE Energy Financial Services

James F. (Jim) Burgoyne is managing director and global leader of GE Energy Financial Services’ Natural Resources business, which invests in energy resources and infrastructure from E&P to downstream across the capital structure—from equity to debt. Burgoyne has led the unit and its predecessors in GE Energy Financial Services since it was formed in 2004. Prior to joining GE in 1997, he was an executive director at SBC Warburg, with responsibilities that included corporate finance, M&A, advisory and capital-markets services for natural-resource companies. He holds a master’s degree in management from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, and a bachelor’s degree in commerce from McGill University.

Bryan Chapman, EVP and Manager, Energy Lending, IberiaBank

W. Bryan Chapman, IberiaBank executive vice president, is head of the bank’s energy-lending practice, which he began building in October 2009. Previously, Chapman was a senior vice president and the energy-lending manager for Amegy Bank, which he joined in 2001 and led commitments of $1.4 billion to private and public upstream and midstream energy companies. Prior to joining Amegy, Chapman was a group vice president in energy lending with ABN Amro Bank, and he began his career in finance as a credit analyst for Nat West, where he was eventually was the relationship manager for Fortune 500 energy clients. He received his B.S. in geology and an MBA from Louisiana Tech University.

Chris Croom, President, Asset Risk Management LLC

Chris Croom, president of Asset Risk Management LLC, has spent the past 14 years marketing structured products and energy derivatives, primarily for large financial institutions. Prior to joining Asset Risk Management, Croom was one of the original members of Bear Energy LP, a subsidiary of The Bear Stearns Cos. Inc., and was responsible for the company's derivative marketing activities across natural gas, crude oil and crude product platforms. Previously, Croom worked for the National Bank of Canada, originating structured product opportunities and marketing energy derivatives to producers and end users across North America. He began his career in derivatives with Enron Corp. as part of Enron's Industrial Markets Group, where he was focused on marketing hedging structures across various OTC commodity markets. He holds a B.S. degree in international economics from Texas Tech University.

Tom Field, Director, Quantum Energy Partners

Thomas G. (Tom) Field IV is a director for private-equity provider Quantum Energy Partners, which he joined from Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s private-equity investment group, BAML Capital Partners. There, he was a director and focused on investments in the energy sector. Previously, he was with Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity and in the firm’s investment-banking division in the M&A group where he worked on numerous transactions with companies across multiple industries. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, he was an associate in the energy and power investment-banking group at UBS. Field received his B.B.A. cum laude in accounting from Baylor University and an MBA with honors in finance from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Moderator: Chris Lallo, Partner, Transaction Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP

Chris Lallo joined the Houston office of Ernst & Young LLP in 2008 and currently leads the transaction tax practice for the Southwest area. He was formerly a partner at Fulbright & Jaworski LLP. His practice is focused on both domestic and international tax matters, with broad-based experience in the area of tax planning related to domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, including taxable and nontaxable transactions, cross-border investments, financing structures, withholding issues, securities offerings, and executive compensation matters. In particular, Lallo has significant experience in advising domestic and international energy companies in connection with upstream, midstream, downstream and oilfield service company transactions. Lallo also has significant experience in mining and other transactions in the natural resources sector.

Greg Matlock, Senior Manager, Transaction Advisory Services, Transaction Tax, Ernst & Young LLP

Greg Matlock is a senior manager in Ernst & Young LLP’s transaction advisory services – transaction tax group in Houston. Prior to joining Ernst & Young, Matlock was a tax lawyer at Fulbright & Jaworski LLP. His practice is focused on U.S. federal income tax planning and structuring for business transactions involving partnerships (including MLPs) and corporations, with particular emphasis on oil and gas investments. Matlock has significant experience in advising domestic and international energy companies in connection with upstream, midstream, downstream and oilfield service company transactions. He has represented investors and companies in various types of inbound and domestic oil and gas investments and transactions, including tax partnerships, limited partnerships, and other joint venture structures, including tax issues related to such structures.

Moderator: Jon McCarter, Partner, Transaction Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP

Jon McCarter serves as the Houston transaction support practice leader and the Americas transactions oil and gas leader at Ernst & Young LLP and has over 20 years of public accounting experience. He has been focused exclusively on assisting financial and strategic buyers and sellers with a broad range of domestic and cross-border transactions. McCarter has advised clients on over 350 transactions, and services provided have included buy-side and sell-side due diligence, accounting and tax structuring advice, financing and valuation advice, direct involvement in negotiating purchase agreement terms, and consultations regarding purchase price adjustment mechanisms and disputes. McCarter has significant transaction experience with companies in all the major sectors of the various natural resource industries.

Kevin Richards, Partner, Partnership Transactional Planning & Economics Group, Ernst & Young LLP

Kevin Richards is a principal in the partnership transactional planning and economics group of Ernst & Young LLP’s national tax department. Based in Houston, Richards advises clients on a wide range of partnership transactions (both domestic and international). More recently, his practice has focused heavily on transactions in the oil and gas and natural resource areas, applying partnership techniques in large corporate acquisitions, dispositions, strategic alliances, cross-border financings and international joint ventures and restructurings. Prior to joining Ernst & Young in 1998, Richards worked at New York-based law firm where his tax practice focused primarily on partnership planning, with an emphasis on private equity transactions, and planning associated with bankruptcy restructurings.

Tim Carlson, Senior Managing Director, Evercore Partners

Tim Carlson, senior managing director for Evercore Partners in the firm’s corporate-advisory business, was most recently a managing director in J.P. Morgan’s global natural resources group and worked in corporate advisory for energy investment banker Petrie Parkman & Co. Carlson advised on numerous oil and gas transactions, including the spin-off of WPX Energy from The Williams Cos., the carve-out of Lone Pine Resources from Forest Oil Corp., Devon Energy Corp.’s exit from the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, Plains Exploration & Production Co.’s Haynesville joint venture with Chesapeake Energy Corp., Barrett Resources Corp.’s takeover defense and subsequent merger with Williams Cos. and the minority squeeze-out transaction involving Vastar Resources Inc. and BP Amoco. Carlson received his B.A. in economics and managerial studies from Rice University.

Tyler Crabtree, Chief Financial Officer, Ursa Resources Group II LLC

Tyler Crabtree, chief financial officer of Ursa Resources Group II LLC, previously was a director in the oil and gas group at Denham Capital Management LP, a $4.5-billion private-equity firm where he was responsible for origination, valuation, structuring and oversight of investments within the oil and gas investment group. Prior to joining Denham, he was an investment-banking associate in the oil and gas group at Randall & Dewey, a division of Jefferies & Co., focused on E&P structured finance and M&A an associate in the merchant-energy group at El Paso Corp.; and an investment-banking analyst at First Union Bank. Crabtree has served on the boards of MS Energy Services, Cadre Services Inc., Greene's Energy Group and NGL Supply. He received his B.A. from Princeton University.

Moderator: Ken Friedman, Director, Denham Capital Management LP

Ken Friedman, a Houston-based director of Denham Capital Management LP, is responsible for origination, analysis, structuring and execution of investments for the oil and gas deal team. Prior to joining Denham, Friedman was a vice president at SFC Energy Partners, senior associate at Battery Ventures, founder and vice president of Innovance Networks, associate at Credit Suisse First Boston and an analyst at Wasserstein Perella & Co. He is currently a member of the board of Cascade Petroleum LLC. Friedman received degrees in finance and accounting from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University.

Rich Gan, Team Lead, Managing Director, Corp. Banking Group, Wells Fargo Energy Group, Oil & Gas Division

Rich Gan is a managing director and team lead for Wells Fargo’s Denver-based energy group and has more spent more than 21 years at Wells Fargo with the past five years dedicated specifically to serving energy-industry clients, ranging from E&P to midstream. Previously, Gan worked in commercial-banking offices for Wells Fargo in California and Texas. He holds a B.A. from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo.

Craig Lande, Managing Director, RBC Richardson Barr

Craig R. Lande, a managing director of Houston-based RBC Richardson Barr, has more than 15 years of experience in the U.S. A&D market, including in the sales of both public and private companies, fairness opinion, general advisory and asset divestitures. Prior to joining RBC Richardson Barr in 2005, Lande was a vice president with asset marketer Waterous & Co. (now Scotiabank) and was creator and editor of Quarterly Market Review, a newsletter focused on upstream A&D valuations and trends. Previously, he was a senior analyst with energy investment-banking firm Cornerstone Ventures LP. He holds a B.S. in business management and marketing from Tulane University.

Moderator: Jordan Marye, Managing Director, Denham Capital Management LP

Jordan Marye, a managing director for Denham Capital Management LP and based in Houston, is responsible for origination, analysis, structuring and execution of investments for the oil and gas deal team. Prior to joining Denham, Marye was an analyst in the global energy group of UBS Investment Bank and a consultant in the energy practice of Huron Consulting Group. He serves currently on the board of Sierra Buckeye LLC and Ursa Resources Group LLC. Marye received a B.S. from Louisiana State University.

Jerry McGee, President and CEO, Cadre Proppants

Jerry G. McGee, president and chief executive officer of Cadre Proppants, founded the company, which sold its 1 billionth pound of frac sand this March, with Denham Capital backing in 2010. Previously, McGee was president and chief executive of privately held Excel Telecom and president of Nasdaq-listed management-consulting and travel-services firm Ambassadors, which was listed No. 65 on Forbes’ Best Company in America list in the category of revenues of $600 million or less. McGee currently also serves on the board of Big Island Carbon, and he has been a guest lecturer for California State University Fullerton on the topic of incentives and company alignment toward purpose. McGee holds a B.S. degree in business administration from the University of Southern California.

John O'Shea, Chief Executive Officer, Tradition Midstream LLC

John O’Shea is the CEO of Tradition Midstream, midstream energy company focused on providing wellhead to market services to producers for their oil, gas and water production. He was the co-founder of Millennium Midstream Partners from 2002 until its sale to Eagle Rock in 2008. Prior to founding Millennium, O’Shea was senior vice president – commercial development for Dynegy. His other experiences at Dynegy include vice president – pipelines and straddle plants, vice president technical services and various business development roles. O’Shea began his 20+ year career in midstream services with Shell Oil and earned an MBA from The University of Texas and a B.S. in petroleum engineering from Louisiana Tech University.

David Preng, President, Preng & Associates

David E. Preng, founder and president, formed Preng & Associates in 1980. Previously, he spent six years in the executive search industry with two international and one national search firm. He has worked on more than 1,500 energy-related searches throughout the world, ranging from board and senior executive to managerial and senior technical positions. His industry experience includes financial, managerial and executive positions with Shell Oil, Litton Industries and Southwest Industries. Preng was a director of Remington Oil and Gas, and he currently serves as a director of Community National Bank and Cal Dive International. He is also a Fellow of the Institute of Directors in London. Preng holds a B.S. degree in finance from Marquette University and an MBA from DePaul University.

Richard Rice, Partner, Bracewell & Giuliani LLP

Richard (Dick) Rice represents and counsels U.S. and international oil and gas companies in all phases of their domestic and global business operations and transactions, including acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, marketing alliances and financings. He also regularly works with energy producers, project sponsors, equity investors and credit providers. In addition, Rice represents clients in the midstream sector and has broad experience with the negotiation of processing and fractionation agreements, and exchange, transportation and storage agreements. He received his M.S. degree magna cum laude from the University of Connecticut and his J.D. degree from Vanderbilt University Law School.

Matthew B. Steele, CEO, Ursa Resources Group II LLC

Matthew B. (Matt) Steele is the chief executive officer of privately held E&P operator Ursa Resources Group II LLC, a Denham Capital Management LP fund company. Steele was president and founding partner of a previous Denham-backed E&P, Ursa Resources Group LLC, focused on exploration and development of the Bakken and Three Forks formations in the Williston Basin. Previously, he was an independent consultant and founding partner of several oil and gas prospect-generating companies. He began his career at Shell E&P and also worked for Southwestern Energy Co. on its Fayetteville-shale project. Steele holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Houston.

Carl Tricoli, Co-Founder, Managing Partner and Co-President, Denham Capital Management LP

Carl Tricoli, co-founder, managing partner and co-president of private-equity firm Denham Capital Management LP, heads the firm’s oil and gas and metals and mining teams and has more than 31 years of experience in energy-industry finance and operations. Prior to co-founding Denham in 2004, Tricoli was president of GeosCapital, a business unit of J.M. Huber Corp., after serving as vice president for Enron North America, a managing director of Koch Producer Services, president of Black Hawk Resources and managing director of corporate finance for NationsBank Capital Markets. He is a member of the boards of C&C Energia Ltd., Fairborne Energy Trust Ltd., Connaught Oil and Gas Ltd. and Sierra Buckeye LLC. Tricoli received his B.A. from The University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Cass Business School in London.

Frank Verducci, Managing Director, Structured Products, BP Corp. North America Inc.

Frank Verducci, a managing director of structured products for BP Corp. North America Inc., is responsible for structured commodity and secured credit transactions with financial sponsors and their portfolio companies in the E&P, midstream, refining and power sectors. Verducci joined BP from RBC Capital Markets, where he worked as an investment banker in the global energy group. Prior to launching a career in finance, he served for nine years as a Naval Aviator, deployed throughout the Middle East, Asia and Latin America, and served as a Naval Aide to the President of the United States. He holds a B.S. in economics from the United States Naval Academy, and an MBA in finance from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

Dr. Tomas Villamil, Co-Founder and EVP, Exploration, C&C Energia Ltd.

Tomas Villamil, Ph.D, P.Doc, is executive vice president, exploration, for Colombia-focused E&P company C&C Energia Ltd. A petroleum geologist with more than 15 years of industry experience, Villamil is one of the founders in 2005 of Denham Capital Management LP-backed C&C. Previously, he was an exploration manager with Lukoil Overseas Colombia, where he was responsible for exploration in Colombia and new ventures in Latin America, and he has held positions with Ecopetrol and Conoco Colombia as an exploration vice president. Villamil holds a degree in geology from Universidad Nacional de Colombia and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado at Boulder. In 2004, he was the recipient of the OC Wheeler award, the highest award granted to petroleum professionals in Colombia.

Mike Wylie, President, Cascade Petroleum LLC

Mike Wylie, founder and president of Cascade Petroleum LLC, has an oil and gas background that spans engineering, operations and management across multiple regions including the onshore U.S., the Gulf of Mexico and international. Prior to forming Denham Capital-backed Cascade, Wylie spent the majority of his career with ExxonMobil Corp. and Newfield Exploration Co., for which he held positions that included asset manager, drilling manager, business-planning engineer, and drilling/completion and operations engineer. As manager for Newfield Exploration’s Eastern Rockies asset team, Wylie enhanced his experience in exploration and development of large-scale, unconventional resource plays in the Rockies. He received his B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from The University of Texas at Austin.