Pioneer changing leadership in Alaska

Pioneer Natural Resources said Oct. 12 that Ken Sheffield, president of the company’s Alaska division, is returning to Dallas to assume leadership of Pioneer’s newly established corporate engineering group. Sheffield has headed the company’s Alaska operation since 2003.

Todd Abbott will take over the Alaska division. The effective date of the changes is Nov. 15.

Pioneer said it has experienced tremendous growth in 2011 and many of its more than 200 engineers are distributed across various disciplines and asset teams. The new engineering group “will be responsible for investigating new technologies and conducting research and development, assisting with special projects and new plays, supporting existing asset teams where technical or staffing gaps exist and providing overall corporate leadership and quality control for the engineering staff.”

The company said Sheffield was instrumental in Pioneer’s entrance into Alaska and has been critical in successfully building the company’s business in the state. Pioneer said Sheffield led Pioneer’s Alaska division from exploration activities to the construction and startup of the Oooguruk development in 2008. Pioneer is the first independent oil and gas company to operate a field on Alaska’s North Slope. Pioneer said Oooguruk set the project cycle-time standard for offshore development projects, moving from exploration to first production in less than six year.

Sheffield also served on the boards of the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, which he chaired from 2008-11, Alaska Clean Seas and the Resource Development Council.

Abbott has been with Pioneer since 2003, most recently as vice president of corporate finance and planning in the company’s Dallas headquarters. His roles at Pioneer have included senior business analyst in both the business development and acquisitions groups and staff support to President and COO Tim Dove.

—Petroleum News