Providence Resources appoints new chief executive

Beleaguered Irish oil and gas explorer Providence Resources has appointed Alan Linn as its new chief executive.

Mr Linn, who was previously chief executive of Third Energy Onshore, joins the company in the wake of the departure of Tony O’Reilly jnr in December 2019. Mr O’Reilly left the company after 14 years following a a series of failures at Providence, ultimately leaving it without funding to progress drilling at its key asset, Barryroe.

Mr Linn brings 35 years of international oil and gas industry experience to the company, working with companies including Lasmo, Cairn Energy, Tullow Oil, ROC Oil and Afren.

“The opportunity to lead the commercialisation of an oil and gas field with the potential of Barryroe is very compelling,” Mr Linn said. “I look forward to working with the board to bring new investment into the project to ensure value creation at the earliest opportunity.”

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Chairman Pat Plunkett said he was pleased Mr Linn was joining the company during what he described as "this time of significant opportunity".

“He has the ideal mix of operational and strategic experience for the position, and will bring valuable insights to the board as we rebuild the business after the challenging past year,” he said. “Alan recognises the considerable potential of the company’s assets, in particular Barryroe, and I am sure he will enhance our options in taking this exciting project to the next stage. I look forward to working with him in the coming years.”

Providence Resources had a tumultuous 2019, with Chinese backer Apec repeatedly missing deadlines to transfer $9 million (€8.1 million) in funding to cover costs associated with drilling at Barryroe. The company was eventually forced to announce it would seek a new partner for the project, and drew up plans to slash costs.

In November, French oil firm Total announced it was withdrawing from the Avalon prospect off the southwest coast of Ireland.