Director Business Development, International
Houston, Tx And Baku, Azerbaijan
Developed and implemented a successful business strategy for entering the USSR as one of the first companies invited to meet with Ministries and local oil companies to identify and acquire prospective oil properties, particularly in the Caspian Sea. (Apache was the first western oil company to receive multiple entry visas from the government of Azerbaijan.) Given the Soviet Union’s lack of institutional framework for conducting business with foreign companies, an evolving understanding of emerging foreign investment laws and accounting standards was required to conduct business contractually. Traveled regularly to Azerbaijan, Russia and Turkey, living for extended periods in Baku. Established and managed an office and maintained oversight of Apache’s Caspian Sea oil concession negotiations. Met regularly with Azerbaijan’s most senior government and industry officials to discuss exploration prospects, Agreements, and production and delivery logistical considerations. Apache successfully negotiated an Agreement in Principle for the future negotiation of a production sharing agreement for an oil concession in the Caspian Sea.