Ahead of its second-quarter earnings report Friday before the open of U.S. markets, Schlumberger, the world's largest provider of oilfield services, said Chief Executive Officer Andrew Gould will retire on Aug. 1 and be replaced by Chief Operating Officer Paal Kibsgaard.
Schlumberger (SLB) said Kibsgaard has served as COO since February 2010, and as a member of the Schlumberger Board since April 2011. Kibsgaard began his career with Exxon Mobil (XOM), the largest U.S. oil company, in 1992. He joined Schlumberger five years later.
Gould, 64, will stay on as chairman of Schlumberger's board until Tony Isaac replaces him in April 2012. Gould began his career with Schlumberger in Paris in 1975 and became CEO of the company in 2003. His departure was widely expected as he had openly discussed his retirement plans over the past year.
Shares of Schlumberger were trading around $19 when Gould took the helm in 2003, according to the Wall Street Journal. The shares closed over $90 today giving the company a market value of $123.4 billion, more than double that of Halliburton (HAL), its closest rival.
Home
Peak Oil Facts
