Parnell named deputy director of O&G

Sean Parnell will fill the deputy director position at the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas effective Dec. 1, and Martin Schultz recently filled a newly created position of commercial analyst and manager for the division’s Royalty Audit section.

“Both individuals have great backgrounds that will allow them to hit the ground running,” division Director Mark Myers said in a Nov. 24 statement from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources.

The Alaska Legislature transferred the authority to conduct oil and gas production royalty audits from the Department of Revenue to the Department of Natural Resources and the new commercial analyst/manager position was created to direct these activities. The department said that this will allow the Division of Oil and Gas staff, who thoroughly understand the industry practices, to conduct the royalty audits.

Parnell worked for ConocoPhillips Alaska for the past three years as the director of state government relations, acting as liaison between state, industry, and community leaders. He served in the Alaska Legislature from 1992-1998, both as a state senator and as a state representative, and was co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee. Parnell has also practiced law in Alaska in the area of commercial litigation.

Schultz was with the Alaska Department of Law as an assistant attorney general for 10 years, most recently in the Oil, Gas & Mining section. He has also worked as a lawyer in private practice, and before that as an accountant with ARCO Alaska. He has a law degree from the University of Oregon and an accounting degree from the University of Alaska Anchorage.