Society of Petroleum Engineers Appoints Simon Seaton as new CEO

The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) said Monday that Simon Seaton had been hired as Chief Executive Officer.

 “In the CEO role, Seaton will work with the  Board of Directors on the short- and long-term development and growth of SPE as the leading global association dedicated to serving professional and student members in the oil and gas and related industries,” SPE said.

Seaton will manage a staff of more than 250 full-time employees in Houston, Dallas,  Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, London and Calgary,

“After the announcement in September 2022 of current CEO Mark Rubin’s planned retirement, the Board of Directors formed a CEO Search Committee and engaged the services of Korn Ferry to coordinate the search for the new senior executive of SPE’s staff. The member-led Search Committee followed a thorough process to ensure inclusivity and diversity in identifying qualified candidates,” SPE said.

“We identified Simon as a perfect candidate to help lead the Society towards the success we all envision for our  profession in the changing energy landscape,” shared 2023 SPE President  Med Kamal. “Our future includes providing the world with the energy it  needs from petroleum, mitigating climate change issues, and developing  new sources of energy—what I refer to as Petroleum ++.”

Seaton most recently held the role of CEO,  Energy and Resources Worldwide, at Sodexo, a global food, facilities management, and workplace services company where he worked since 2012 in Houston, Singapore, and Dubai. 

A chemist by education, his career began as a drilling fluids engineer. He spent 22 years at Halliburton in various technical, business development and executive roles in Aberdeen, Houston, and Nigeria. 

Positions at Halliburton included Country Vice  President, Managing Director of the UK, and Senior Director of Deepwater Solutions. Seaton has been an SPE member for more than 25 years and has authored or co-authored more than 20 technical papers. Originally from the UK, he currently resides in Houston.

 “I am extremely excited and honored to have been given this opportunity to be part of SPE, an organization I have  been a member of for more than 25 years. I am looking forward to working with the members, board and staff,” said Seaton.

 He will join SPE on July 20 and will be based in Houston. Rubin will retire at the end of June.