Serica Energy taps Chris Cox as its new CEO

Independent upstream oil and gas firm Serica Energy announced the appointment of Chris Cox as its new chief executive officer on Tuesday, effective 1 July.

The AIM-traded firm said following the appointment, David Latin, who had been serving as interim CEO, would conclude his temporary role.

It said Cox would bring more than 40 years of extensive experience in the oil and gas industry, having held various roles with both major corporations and independent firms.

Over the last 20 years, he had demonstrated leadership in managing complex multi-asset and multi-country businesses.

Cox's previous roles included CEO of Spirit Energy, interim CEO at Capricorn Energy, and chairman of Kellas Midstream.

He had also served as a non-executive director for both private equity and publicly listed companies, with his most recent position being with Nostrum Oil and Gas.

“We are delighted to have secured the services of Chris Cox after a rigorous recruitment process,” said chairman and interim chief executive officer David Latin.

“His technical and commercial acumen, combined with his track record in leadership and teambuilding as CEO of substantial upstream entities operating in multiple geographies including the UK and Norway, make him an excellent fit with Serica's existing operations, exciting drilling programme currently underway and ambitions to grow through mergers and acquisitions.

“With this appointment, we have our new executive team in place and I look forward to working with them to deliver growth and returns for our investors.”

Cox holds a Bachelor of Science degree in petroleum engineering from Imperial College, London.

“I am honoured to be given the opportunity to lead the team at Serica at this very important time,” commented Chris Cox.

“In the last several years, Serica has established itself as one of the leading producing companies in the UK North Sea.

“I will do my utmost to continue the company's reputation for safe high quality operational performance, to realise the significant potential for growth within the existing portfolio and to add further value for shareholders through mergers and acquisitions.”

At 1248 BST, shares in Serica Energy were up 0.61% at 181.4p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.