Timothy J. Cutt has served as Chief Executive Officer since July 2016. Prior
to joining Cobalt, Mr. Cutt served as President, Petroleum of BHP Billiton,
accountable for its global oil and natural gas business from July 2013 until
March 2016. Mr. Cutt joined BHP Billiton in 2007 as the President of the Production
Division in the Petroleum business where he was accountable for running operations
in the UK, Pakistan, Trinidad & Tobago, Algeria, Australia and the U.S.
During this time, he was instrumental in building the operating capacity for
BHP Billiton’s Deepwater Business. Before joining BHP Billiton, Mr. Cutt
held positions in engineering, operations and senior management for 24 years
with Mobil Oil Corporation and then ExxonMobil. During this time he spent 10
years supporting exploration and production activities in the Gulf of Mexico
and held positions of President Hibernia Management and Development Co. and
President of ExxonMobil de Venezuela. Mr. Cutt has a Bachelor of Science Degree
in Petroleum Engineering from Louisiana Tech University.
David D. Powell joined Cobalt in July 2016 and serves as Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Powell has more than 35 years of experience in the oil and natural gas industry.
He previously served as Chief Financial Officer for BHP Billiton – Petroleum
and was accountable for all finance, accounting, commercial assurance, supply
chain and information technology activities from March 2009 until May 2016.
Mr. Powell joined BHP Billiton from Occidental Oil and Gas Corporation where
he served as Vice President Houston Finance from November 2007 to February 2009.
Mr. Powell began his employment with Occidental Oil and Gas Corporation in 1981
and held progressively more senior roles in the United States, Argentina, Russia,
Malaysia and Qatar until he joined BHP Billiton - Petroleum. Mr. Powell started
his career in 1980 with the public accounting firm Deloitte, Haskins and Sells.
Mr. Powell holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting, graduating summa cum laude
from William Jewell College, he completed the Advanced Management Program at
the Harvard Business School and he holds a Certified Public Accountant certificate
from the state of Missouri.
Rodney M. Skaufel joined Cobalt in August 2016 and serves as President, Operations.
Mr. Skaufel has more than 30 years of experience in the oil and natural gas
industry and brings deep technical capability and strategic focus. Prior to
joining Cobalt, Mr. Skaufel served as Head of Strategic Planning, Corporation
for BHP Billiton and was the head of strategic planning, value management and
the investment office. Mr. Skaufel joined BHP Billiton in 2007 and, prior to
his promotion to his most recent position there, he served as President, North
America Shale from 2013 to 2015. Prior to that, in 2012 he held the title of
President, Conventional Business. He also led BHP Billiton’s engineering
function and Central Engineering organization comprised of subject matter experts
in deepwater floating systems including subsea, subsurface, and umbilicals.
Mr. Skaufel joined BHP Billiton from ExxonMobil where he served as Technical
Operations Manager – Chad–Cameroon from 2003 to 2007 and Planning
Advisor from 2000 to 2003. Mr. Skaufel began his career in 1985 with Mobil Oil
Corporation and held progressively more senior roles until he joined ExxonMobil.
Mr. Skaufel holds a Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering from the Colorado
School of Mines.
James H. Painter has served as President, Exploration and Appraisal since January
2017. Mr. Painter previously served as Executive Vice President from April 2013
until December 2016, and as Executive Vice President, Gulf of Mexico from our
inception in November 2005 until April 2013. Mr. Painter has more than 37 years
of experience in the oil and natural gas industry. Prior to joining Cobalt,
from February 2004 to September 2005, Mr. Painter was the Senior Vice President
of Exploration and Technology at Unocal Corporation. Prior to his position at
Unocal Corporation (following the merger between Ocean Energy Inc. and Devon
Energy Corporation), from April 2003 to October 2003, Mr. Painter served as
the Vice President of Exploration at Devon Energy Corporation, an oil and natural
gas exploration and production company. From January 1995 to April 2003, Mr.
Painter served in various manager and executive positions at Ocean Energy Inc.
(and its predecessor Flores and Rucks, Inc.) with his final position as Senior
Vice President of Gulf of Mexico and International Exploration. Additional industry
experience includes positions at Forest Oil Corporation, an independent oil
and natural gas exploration and production company, Mobil Oil Corporation and
Superior Oil Company, Inc. Mr. Painter holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology
from Louisiana State University.
Jeffrey A. Starzec has served as Executive Vice President, General Counsel
and Secretary since February 2015. Mr. Starzec also serves as our Corporate
Secretary. Mr. Starzec served as our Senior Vice President and General Counsel
from January 2012 to February 2015. From June 2009 until December 2011, Mr.
Starzec served as our Associate General Counsel and Corporate Secretary. Prior
to joining Cobalt, Mr. Starzec practiced corporate and securities law at Vinson
& Elkins LLP from 2006 until 2009, where he represented a variety of energy
companies, including Cobalt in connection with its strategic alliance with Total
in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Mr. Starzec began his legal career at Baker Botts
LLP and holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Duke University and a
J.D. from Harvard Law School.
Richard A. Smith has served as Senior Vice President, Strategy and Business
Development since August 2016. Mr. Smith previously served as Senior Vice President
from September 2014 until July 2016. Prior to that, Mr. Smith served as Senior
Vice President and President of Cobalt Angola from November 2013 to September
2014. Mr. Smith served as Vice President, Investor Relations, Compliance and
Risk Management from December 2012 until November 2013. Before that, Mr. Smith
served as Vice President, Investor Relations and Planning from October 2011
until December 2012. Mr. Smith served as Vice President, International Business
Development, Commercial and Finance from September 2010 until October 2011.
From October 2007 until September 2010, Mr. Smith served as our Vice President,
International. Mr. Smith has over 34 years of oil and natural gas industry experience
in North American and international markets. Prior to joining Cobalt, from September
2005 to September 2007, Mr. Smith was Vice President, Joint Venture Development
Corporate Affairs for the BP Russia Offshore Strategic Performance Unit, an
oil and natural gas exploration and production unit of BP. From February 2002
to August 2005, he held the position of Vice President and then Executive Director
for BP Exploration (Angola) Limited, an oil and natural gas exploration and
production company operating in Angola. Mr. Smith’s additional industry
experience includes leadership positions at various companies in the oil and
natural gas industry operating in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, the United Kingdom,
the United States and Canada. Mr. Smith holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the
University of Calgary.
Cobalt International Energy, Inc. currently has 111 employees.