ExxonMobil announces new Chairman/Managing Director in Nigeria

ExxonMobil has announced Mr. Shane Harris as its new chairman and managing director in the country.

Mr. Ogechukwu Udeagha, the Manager, Media and Communications of ExxonMobil, announced this in a statement made available to newsmen in Eket on Monday.

He said that Harris was to assume the role of lead country manager for ExxonMobil’s three affiliates in Nigeria due to Richard Laing's retirement.

“ExxonMobil has appointed Mr. Shane Harris as chairman, managing director, and lead country manager of its three affiliates in Nigeria.

“The three affiliates include Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, and Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Offshore East),” he said.

Udeagha said that Harris succeeds Laing, who is retiring from the company after 33 years of service, effective July 1.

Harris, prior to his appointment, was the chairman and president of ExxonMobil Exploration and Production, Malaysia Incorporated.

“It is a privilege to lead the ExxonMobil team in Nigeria and build on the work that Richard Laing has done over the last three years.

“I look forward to the work that lies ahead and continuing the company’s outstanding relationships,” he said.

Since joining ExxonMobil in 1998, Harris has held a variety of leadership, engineering, and business assignments in Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Russia, and the United States.

“In two of these previous assignments, he served as asset manager for Imperial Oil’s Kearl oil sands mining asset in northern Alberta, Canada, and as ExxonMobil’s global drilling technical manager in Houston,” Udeagha said.

He said that Harris is Australian and holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Newcastle, Australia.