Cairn rejigs leadership team to drive $1-bn investment plan

Cairn India on Thursday announced the strengthening of its leadership team to realise the company’s vision to contribute 50 per cent of the country’s crude oil and gas production and channel investments of at least $1 billion.

“Cairn is at an inflection point in its journey of growth with five fast-track projects and investments of over $1 billion in the next 18-20 months which are expected to yield about 100,000 barrels of oil and gas per day,” the company said in a statement.

The strategic move will empower the core leadership to take key decisions and to drive Cairn to the next phase of growth, it said.

“The company plans to undertake exploration drilling in its Krishna-Godavari block in 2018 and has also put in expressions of interest for 15 exploration blocks under the government’s new open acreage licensing policy.”

According to the statement, the roles of Sudhir Mathur, Suniti Bhat, Pankaj Kalra and Sharad Goenka have been enhanced to lead this growth strategy. Mathur, who was earlier the acting chief executive officer and chief financial officer (CFO) will now take over as chief executive; Bhat, who was earlier director of oil and gas, will now have the role of chief operating officer.

Kalra, who was deputy CFO, has been elevated to the position of CFO, while Goenka has been elevated as chief strategy and policy officer from his earlier role as head of new business.