Across the Cuadrilla group it’s notable that two directors of the parent company, Cuadrilla Resouce Holdings, also appear as directors of Cuadrilla’s subsidiary companies. This would indicate they are the senior managers responsible for operations on the ground.
These directors are Mark Miller and Dennis Carlton. As well as directors of CRH, Miller and Carlton are directors of all Cuadrilla’s UK other operations so far.
Taken together, Cuadrilla Resource’s management team have fracked more than 1500 wells.
Mark Miller
Mark Miller (57, USA)
Director, Cuadrilla Resources; Director, Cuadrilla Resource Holdings
As VP of Cuadrilla Resource Holdings, Miller appears as signatory the accounts, indicating he has a financial role within the parent company, as well as being boss of the subsiduary in Lancashire, Cuadrilla Resources.
Miller has been the front face of Caudrilla Resource’s efforts. He has surprised locals with unexpected appearances on their doorsteps and is a regular in front of the cameras. It’ s rare for such a highly-paid executive to get their hands dirty. This would indicate that Miller is highly-motivated with a vested interest in seeing Caudrilla succeed.
He’s worked in the oil and gas sector for 38 years specializing in reservoir engineering and simulation of both natural gas and fractured reservoirs. He’s also a bit of an entrepreneur founding and running Eastern Reservoir Service until 2005.
Dennis Carlton
Dennis Carlton (61, USA)
Director, Caudrilla Resources; Director, Cuadrilla Resource Holdings
Another member of Cuadrilla Resource Holdings’ board, Carlton is another entrepreneur, founding and running Evergreen Resources until 2004. With 30 years of oil and gas experience under his belt, Carlton’s exploits appear in the documentary Gasland – he led the successful development of coal bed methane in Colorado.
He’s an experienced wildcatter – in 2000 he received the Outstanding Explorer Award from the Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists.
Peter Turner
Peter Turner (63, UK)
Director, Cuadrilla Resources
Turner is a founder of Cuadrilla Resources and ran the company until investors Riverstone/ Carlyle bought into the company in 2010. He remains secretary of CR indicating he has an admin role.
Like Miller and Carlton he is a board member of all Cuadrilla Resources subsiduaries. He hails from academia – he previously headed the Petroleum Geosciences Unit at the University of Birmingham. Turner is Cuadrilla’s main man on geology he’s written over 150 publications and books. He holds a B.Sc, a PhD and an honory D.Sc in Geology. Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and the Americas. Currently he manages Cuadrilla’s exploration activities in mainland Europe.
Andrew Price (42, UK)
Andrew Price is an accountant appears on the boards of all Cuadrilla Resource’s subsiduary, but not on the parent’s, Cuadrilla Resources. This indicates he has supervisory role for the organisation looking after how the subsiduaries run. Indeed, Price signs off their accounts He’s based in Sutton Coldfield, as is Turner, perhaps indicating that the two worked together before investment by Riverstone/ Carlyle.
Eric Vaughan
Eric Vaughan (US)
Chief Operating Officer
Vaughan is the point man for operations, supervising drilling and fracking efforts. He has history of working for Dennis Carlton – he established Evergreen Well Services to run operations for Carlton’s Evergreen Resources (see above).
Indeed, Caudrilla’s corporate structure seems to be based on Carlton and Vaughan’s previously collaborations or, as the Cuadrilla website has it the ‘seamless vertically integrated drilling and completion service subsidiary is a model operated by Cuadrilla to underpin operational standards and safeguards.’
Marc Bustin
Marc Bustin (Canada)
General Manager Technology
Bustin was an early investor in Cuadrilla Resources and remained so until he was bought out when Riverstone Carlyle came on board.
Along with Turner, Bustin is the brains behind the science he’s designed and managed gas shale and coalbed methane evaluation projects in China, Botswana, Europe, Australia, SE Asia, India and basins throughout North America.
Ken Lowe
Ken Lowe (UK)
Netherlands Company Manager
Lowe has worked in the Netherlands for more than five years. In 2010 he joined Cuadrilla to spearhead operations there. Previous experience with Weatherford International, responsible for measuring the physical properties of rocks in oil wells all over the world.
Paul Kelly
Paul Kelly (UK)
Communications consultant, Cuadrilla Resources
Kelly is a director for PPS Group, which advertises itself as a PR agency. In reality PPS is nothing of the sort: its activities go far beyond PR.
Kelly’s role is summed up by PPS Group’s Senior Consultant, Peter Golds who advises: ‘meet the right people and always ensure that you are informed and well briefed and that your client, who must be the spokesperson, is equally well briefed. By following this you will do the best for your clients and be able to remain what you should be an effective adviser and consultant not the story or the issue.’ (quoted from ‘Lobbying: the Art of Political Persuasion’, Lionel Zetter.
Kelly advertises himself as an expert in ‘crisis and issues management, public affairs; stakeholder relations and communications strategy’. He’s an inveterate insider with ‘extensive’ experience of working with government departments and agencies.
Nick Sutcliffe
Nick Sutcliffe (UK)
Communications consultant, Cuadrilla Resources
Although he advertises himself as a PR advisor, Sutcliffe appears to be working with Caudrilla in a specific area: planning. His background is revealing: ‘before joining PPS in May 2007 he was a planning specialist for 8 years at another major public affairs agency.’
Sutcliffe is a particularly sinister figure within the Cuadrilla team of operations. As well as bearing a striking resemblance to Peter Mandelson, he also performs a similar role.
Sutcliffe is a politician for Guildford District Council (Conservative Councillor for Ash South & Tongham Ward). His expertise is planning permissions he’s serves on the Planning committee at Guildford District Council as well as being Lead Councillor for Environmental Services.
Sutcliffe is an inveterate lobbyist. His bio states: ‘He has represented some of the most controversial industry sectors including energy-intensive industries, construction and development, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, private health insurance and medical devices. He has successfully used front-page media coverage to shift perceptions and achieve a step change in politicians’ views and rapid shifts in public policy.’
Sutcliffe also appears to be running Cuadrilla’s website his name appears as the author of most documents on the site.
