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Meet the Nominees
Meet the Nominees-listing
Meet the Nominees
Hesham Mekawi
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas*
- Operations
- Executive**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* Egypt & North Africa regional focus
** C-level experience
As Regional President for BP North Africa (2014-2020), Hesham was responsible for a business that spans Egypt, Libya, Algeria and Morocco with a total workforce of c.10,000 employees which was producing c.950,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Hesham transformed BP's Egypt business by identifying and translating complex growth opportunities into tangible outcomes, including leading successful negotiations for the modernisation of the fiscal and commercial terms of BP's Egyptian concessions.
He led the merger between BP Egypt and BP North Africa to create a more responsive and performance-driven organisation, resulting in significantly reduced costs, improved efficiency and outstanding growth potential for BP’s North Africa business.
Hesham held various roles with BP and Amoco earlier in his career, focusing on financial operations, strategic planning, economic analysis and business development across locations in Cairo, Houston, Chicago and London.
He was formerly head of the Egyptian side of the Egyptian British Business Council (2013-2020) and is presently a board member of various private entities, including Orange Egypt and Egypt’s Sovereign Infrastructure & Utilities Sub-Fund.
After obtaining his bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Cairo University (1983), Hesham completed an MBA at Boston University (1988) followed by an Advanced Management Program (AMP) from Harvard Business School (2001).
Chris Cox
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas
- Operations*
- Executive**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* Reservoir engineering and drilling operations focus
** C-level experience
Under his leadership as CEO of Spirit Energy (2016-2022), Chris transformed Centrica’s E&P business through a combination with Bayerngas to create a smaller, Europe-focused and sustainable business producing c.50 million barrels of oil equivalent per year.
Chris refreshed the Centrica E&P portfolio by exiting non-core regions, creating a more streamlined North Sea upstream business, returning significant capital to the parent organisation and delivering material cost savings across the business.
Following Centrica’s decision to minimise upstream exposure, Chris managed the successful sale of Spirit’s Norwegian assets, returning significant capital to shareholders and re-focusing Spirit on optimising value from its UK asset base.
Earlier in his career, Chris held various senior roles with BG Group (2006-2015), Amerada Hess (2004-2006) and Chevron (1982-2004) in locations across Europe, Africa, Australia, the US and Asia-Pacific region. He also served as non-executive chairman of Kellas Midstream (2015-2020).
Chris brings a wealth of highly relevant experience to maximising the value of Capricorn’s oil & gas assets, including reservoir engineering, drilling operations, strategic planning, M&A, capital projects, HSE, government interactions and JV management.
Chris graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from Imperial College, University of London (1982).
Maria Gordon
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas
- Executive
- Portfolio Management*
- ESG**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* Direct investment experience (emerging markets focus)
** Public board experience
Maria currently serves as Non-Executive Chair of Constellation Oil Services, a deep-water drilling oil services company based in Brazil.
Her non-executive career spans multiple public companies where she has led and served on numerous committees including audit, sustainability, nomination and remuneration.
Maria previously led the emerging markets portfolio management team at PIMCO and spent 12 years at Goldman Sachs, where she became a leading portfolio manager with assets under management of c.US$10 billion.
Maria was named Fund Manager of the Year on multiple occasions by Lipper and Morningstar (2004-2007) and was listed in Financial News’ 40 under 40 in Asset Management and Rising Stars in Finance (2011).
Maria holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin (1995) and a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University (1998). She is a Chartered Financial Analyst (2001) and received a Corporate Director Certificate from Harvard Business School (2019).
She is a two times Guinness record holder for the Explorers Grand Slam and the Seven Summits challenge, having climbed five 8,000m peaks (including Everest) and skied to the North and South Poles.
Craig van der Laan
Relevant expertise
- Operations
- Executive*
- Portfolio Management
- ESG**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* C-level experience
** Public board experience
Craig has had an extensive international career with a range of large public companies in operational, functional, legal/M&A, special project leadership and unique advisory roles.
He has had deep exposure to the interaction between the public and private sectors and has a strong understanding of the roles and expectations of boards as well as their interactions with executive management.
Most recently, Craig was CEO of the New South Wales Government’s Barangaroo Delivery Authority (2014-2019) where he was responsible for a high-profile A$10 billion infrastructure and urban renewal project.
Craig held several positions with the Brambles Group, including as President of Brambles’ CHEP logistics/network business across the Asia Pacific region, Global Head of M&A, Group General Counsel and Group Company Secretary.
He also held senior executive and advisory roles with the Westfield Group, Transurban Group, CIMIC Group, Lend Lease Corporation and the Foster’s Group.
Craig currently serves as non-executive director of SHAPE Group, one of Australia’s largest refurbishment specialists, where he is also Chair of the Remuneration & HR committees and sits on the Nomination committee.
Craig is a qualified lawyer and holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) from the University of Sydney.
Richard Herbert
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas
- Operations*
- Executive**
- ESG
* Subsurface technical & exploration focus
** C-level & public board experience
In addition to his strong background in operations, reservoir management and exploration, Richard is an experienced negotiator of complex commercial agreements with governments and field partners.
Most recently, Richard was CEO of Frontera Energy (2018-2021), where he was responsible for stabilising oil production, extending reserve life and successfully refinancing the company’s debt following its emergence from bankruptcy several years prior.
Richard served as BP’s head of exploration (2013-2016), where he oversaw major oil & gas discoveries in Egypt, Angola, the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico and Brazil.
Prior to re-joining BP, Richard was a member of Talisman Energy’s executive team, where he led Talisman’s acquisition, jointly with Ecopetrol, of BP’s Colombia operations to form the Equion JV company for which he also served on the board (2010-2013).
Before joining Talisman, Richard spent 6 years with TNK-BP in Russia, serving first as VP Exploration and then EVP Technology.
His career started at Phillips Petroleum, followed by 19 years at BP in senior exploration and development positions spanning Southeast Asia, Latin America, the US, Angola and the UK North Sea.
Richard holds a bachelor’s degree in Geology from the University of Bristol and currently serves as a non-executive director at PGS ASA, where he is also a member of the Remuneration committee and previously served on the Audit committee.
Tom Pitts
Relevant expertise
- Executive
- Portfolio Management*
- ESG
- Capital Markets / M&A**
* Direct investment experience (emerging markets focus)
** Relationship with leading institutional and alternative investors
Tom has broad experience in investment banking, portfolio management and emerging markets across a range of asset classes, including equities, credit and derivatives.
He is currently Head of Europe and an investment committee member at LionRock Capital, a private equity firm investing primarily in Europe and Asia.
Prior to joining LionRock, Tom was a managing director at Credit Suisse, where he ran distribution and coverage groups involved in leveraged finance, credit, equity derivatives, cash equities and private placements.
He has direct investment experience in numerous emerging and frontier markets, including Vietnam, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Laos.
Additionally, his decades of experience working with a range of institutional and alternative asset managers will allow him to guide Capricorn to better interface with shareholders.
Tom currently serves as vice chairman of Harmony Advisors, non-executive director of SiGi Capital and non-executive director of Clarks, where he is also chair of the Remuneration committee and a member of the Audit committee. He has also served as non-executive director of FC Internazionale Milano S.p.A (2019-2021).
Tom holds a master’s degree from Queens’ College, University of Cambridge (1992).
Hesham Mekawi
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas*
- Operations
- Executive**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* Egypt & North Africa regional focus
** C-level experience
As Regional President for BP North Africa (2014-2020), Hesham was responsible for a business that spans Egypt, Libya, Algeria and Morocco with a total workforce of c.10,000 employees which was producing c.950,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Hesham transformed BP's Egypt business by identifying and translating complex growth opportunities into tangible outcomes, including leading successful negotiations for the modernisation of the fiscal and commercial terms of BP's Egyptian concessions.
He led the merger between BP Egypt and BP North Africa to create a more responsive and performance-driven organisation, resulting in significantly reduced costs, improved efficiency and outstanding growth potential for BP’s North Africa business.
Hesham held various roles with BP and Amoco earlier in his career, focusing on financial operations, strategic planning, economic analysis and business development across locations in Cairo, Houston, Chicago and London.
He was formerly head of the Egyptian side of the Egyptian British Business Council (2013-2020) and is presently a board member of various private entities, including Orange Egypt and Egypt’s Sovereign Infrastructure & Utilities Sub-Fund.
After obtaining his bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Cairo University (1983), Hesham completed an MBA at Boston University (1988) followed by an Advanced Management Program (AMP) from Harvard Business School (2001).
Chris Cox
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas
- Operations*
- Executive**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* Reservoir engineering and drilling operations focus
** C-level experience
Under his leadership as CEO of Spirit Energy (2016-2022), Chris transformed Centrica’s E&P business through a combination with Bayerngas to create a smaller, Europe-focused and sustainable business producing c.50 million barrels of oil equivalent per year.
Chris refreshed the Centrica E&P portfolio by exiting non-core regions, creating a more streamlined North Sea upstream business, returning significant capital to the parent organisation and delivering material cost savings across the business.
Following Centrica’s decision to minimise upstream exposure, Chris managed the successful sale of Spirit’s Norwegian assets, returning significant capital to shareholders and re-focusing Spirit on optimising value from its UK asset base.
Earlier in his career, Chris held various senior roles with BG Group (2006-2015), Amerada Hess (2004-2006) and Chevron (1982-2004) in locations across Europe, Africa, Australia, the US and Asia-Pacific region. He also served as non-executive chairman of Kellas Midstream (2015-2020).
Chris brings a wealth of highly relevant experience to maximising the value of Capricorn’s oil & gas assets, including reservoir engineering, drilling operations, strategic planning, M&A, capital projects, HSE, government interactions and JV management.
Chris graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from Imperial College, University of London (1982).
Maria Gordon
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas
- Executive
- Portfolio Management*
- ESG**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* Direct investment experience (emerging markets focus)
** Public board experience
Maria currently serves as Non-Executive Chair of Constellation Oil Services, a deep-water drilling oil services company based in Brazil.
Her non-executive career spans multiple public companies where she has led and served on numerous committees including audit, sustainability, nomination and remuneration.
Maria previously led the emerging markets portfolio management team at PIMCO and spent 12 years at Goldman Sachs, where she became a leading portfolio manager with assets under management of c.US$10 billion.
Maria was named Fund Manager of the Year on multiple occasions by Lipper and Morningstar (2004-2007) and was listed in Financial News’ 40 under 40 in Asset Management and Rising Stars in Finance (2011).
Maria holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin (1995) and a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University (1998). She is a Chartered Financial Analyst (2001) and received a Corporate Director Certificate from Harvard Business School (2019).
She is a two times Guinness record holder for the Explorers Grand Slam and the Seven Summits challenge, having climbed five 8,000m peaks (including Everest) and skied to the North and South Poles.
Craig van der Laan
Relevant expertise
- Operations
- Executive*
- Portfolio Management
- ESG**
- Capital Markets / M&A
* C-level experience
** Public board experience
Craig has had an extensive international career with a range of large public companies in operational, functional, legal/M&A, special project leadership and unique advisory roles.
He has had deep exposure to the interaction between the public and private sectors and has a strong understanding of the roles and expectations of boards as well as their interactions with executive management.
Most recently, Craig was CEO of the New South Wales Government’s Barangaroo Delivery Authority (2014-2019) where he was responsible for a high-profile A$10 billion infrastructure and urban renewal project.
Craig held several positions with the Brambles Group, including as President of Brambles’ CHEP logistics/network business across the Asia Pacific region, Global Head of M&A, Group General Counsel and Group Company Secretary.
He also held senior executive and advisory roles with the Westfield Group, Transurban Group, CIMIC Group, Lend Lease Corporation and the Foster’s Group.
Craig currently serves as non-executive director of SHAPE Group, one of Australia’s largest refurbishment specialists, where he is also Chair of the Remuneration & HR committees and sits on the Nomination committee.
Craig is a qualified lawyer and holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) from the University of Sydney.
Richard Herbert
Relevant expertise
- Oil & Gas
- Operations*
- Executive**
- ESG
* Subsurface technical & exploration focus
** C-level & public board experience
In addition to his strong background in operations, reservoir management and exploration, Richard is an experienced negotiator of complex commercial agreements with governments and field partners.
Most recently, Richard was CEO of Frontera Energy (2018-2021), where he was responsible for stabilising oil production, extending reserve life and successfully refinancing the company’s debt following its emergence from bankruptcy several years prior.
Richard served as BP’s head of exploration (2013-2016), where he oversaw major oil & gas discoveries in Egypt, Angola, the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico and Brazil.
Prior to re-joining BP, Richard was a member of Talisman Energy’s executive team, where he led Talisman’s acquisition, jointly with Ecopetrol, of BP’s Colombia operations to form the Equion JV company for which he also served on the board (2010-2013).
Before joining Talisman, Richard spent 6 years with TNK-BP in Russia, serving first as VP Exploration and then EVP Technology.
His career started at Phillips Petroleum, followed by 19 years at BP in senior exploration and development positions spanning Southeast Asia, Latin America, the US, Angola and the UK North Sea.
Richard holds a bachelor’s degree in Geology from the University of Bristol and currently serves as a non-executive director at PGS ASA, where he is also a member of the Remuneration committee and previously served on the Audit committee.
Tom Pitts
Relevant expertise
- Executive
- Portfolio Management*
- ESG
- Capital Markets / M&A**
* Direct investment experience (emerging markets focus)
** Relationship with leading institutional and alternative investors
Tom has broad experience in investment banking, portfolio management and emerging markets across a range of asset classes, including equities, credit and derivatives.
He is currently Head of Europe and an investment committee member at LionRock Capital, a private equity firm investing primarily in Europe and Asia.
Prior to joining LionRock, Tom was a managing director at Credit Suisse, where he ran distribution and coverage groups involved in leveraged finance, credit, equity derivatives, cash equities and private placements.
He has direct investment experience in numerous emerging and frontier markets, including Vietnam, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Laos.
Additionally, his decades of experience working with a range of institutional and alternative asset managers will allow him to guide Capricorn to better interface with shareholders.
Tom currently serves as vice chairman of Harmony Advisors, non-executive director of SiGi Capital and non-executive director of Clarks, where he is also chair of the Remuneration committee and a member of the Audit committee. He has also served as non-executive director of FC Internazionale Milano S.p.A (2019-2021).
Tom holds a master’s degree from Queens’ College, University of Cambridge (1992).