The VGS team has more than 40 consultants providing clients with specialist expertise in subsurface, surface and new venture development as well as a wide range of functional disciplines including HSSE and value assurance.
John Voon – Director VGS
John Voon is an industry-leading subsurface specialist with a proven track record in exploration, business development and M&A across Asia. John pioneered Shell’s deepwater exploration success in the South China Sea including the discovery of 1500mmboe in Sabah. He has also participated in more than 40 wells across NW Borneo and is actively involved in Upstream ventures in Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Timor Leste and Australia.
John provides hands-on delivery experience in a wide variety of basins, trap styles and play types. He is also a specialist in exploration derisking technology including: Low Frequency Seismic; WAZ CSEM; Broadband; Novel Seismic Interpretation; Helium Surveys, Technology (QI) and a range of low cost well delivery techniques.
John combines this deep technical expertise with strong commercial acumen and an extensive network of contacts among NOCs, IOCs and service companies across the region.
The scope of John’s expertise and experience is highlighted in the image below.
Kushwant Singh – Geoscientist and Datascientist
Kushwant Singh is a Petroleum Geoscientist with more than 25 years of operating and joint venture experience in Australia, South East Asia and the Middle East. He has a proven track record in 4D and 3D seismic interpretation, dynamic and static model integration and well planning using PETREL software. He is also experienced in new ventures and exploration, risk mitigation and data management. His delivery track record includes:
- Brownfield management with Brunei Shell working on Champion and Ampa fields
- Re-determination of remaining Champion Main Field oil reserves and planning waterflood well placements after conducting reservoir performance reviews based on the identifying partial OWC movement on 4D seismic
- Successfully evaluated a divestment opportunity consisting of Kufpec’s partial interests in two offshore Australian (Corowa and Amulet) fields and associated leads, resulting in acquisition
- Expertly reviewed operators’ technical work with respect to the Julimar-Brenello gas fields, as part of the Wheatstone project
- Generated machine learning (ML) production forecasting scenarios to predict end of field life and potential well workover candidates
- Used ML to work on classification, regression and clustering issues pertaining to geological data
- Generated and implemented Python scripts to QAQC data inventory transfer from IOC to client – as part of the asset handover process.
- Created two ML courses relating to oil and gas production forecasting and petrophysics
Tony Lake – Reservoir Engineer
Tony Lake is an experienced Reservoir Engineer and team lead with a broad background in petroleum development and exploration (onshore and offshore); oil, lean / rich gas, coal and shale. He has a strong understanding of the technology enabling the maximisation of gas and oil recovery to guide decision makers.
His delivery track record includes:
- Playing a key role in the integrated team leading to significant (multi TCF) gas discoveries in Deepwater Sabah Malaysia. His role was key to driving a horizontal well field development of a half-billion barrel oil field.
- Taking onshore projects from justification to development and expansion of lucrative Australia gas fields.
- Justifying the expanded development of a mature multi TCF gas field while working for NAM in North Sear resulting in significant extension to production life.
- Managing multidisciplinary teams in Australia working on significant gas and oil fields for Santos and Beach Energy. Tony provided strong technical drive to enable Beach’s expansion from small capitalisation to major Australian hydrocarbon producer.
- Leading reserve reporting for major Upstream asset in The Philippines.
- Working in a team investigating innovative methods of generating and storing hydrogen.
Tony is a Reservoir Engineering TA2 and a QPRE (Qualified Petroleum Reserve Estimator).
Trevor Magee – Senior Geoscientist
Trevor Magee has extensive experience of key well analysis in SE Asian basins including East Java Basin, Northern Central and Southern Sumatra Basins. His track record includes:
- Sotong and Anding marginal field development feasibility study for WMC Petroleum with Petronas and Carigali.
- Chief Geologist on PM7 exploration block, leading to gas discovery well.
- Development feasibility studies on Ande Ande Lumut adjacent to Malaysian waters in Northwest Natuna Basin.
- Leading a Volumes to Value workshop and follow-up analysis for Shell and Petronas on the Baram Field.
Trevor has conducted a range of regional exploration studies using sequence stratigraphy to delineate play fairways. He has indepth knowledge of the advantages and limitations of biostratigraphic schemes employed in SE Asia including calcareous nannofossils, planktonic foraminifera and larger forams.
He has also worked as a Petrophysicist and so has a keen eye for logs, as indicators of depositional environment as well as reservoir development.
Keith Chan – Senior Geoscientist
Keith has 17 years industry experience in oil and gas exploration with an in-depth understanding of basins across Southeast Asia. His key projects have included the evaluation and development of wells in Brunei (HPHT), Myanmar (stratigraphic), New Zealand (transition zone), Indonesia (sub thrust) and Malaysia (carbonates) delivering 4 – 6 Tcf recoverable oil and gas. Keith also acquired and tested the first sub-carbonate broadband seismic in Malaysia with Petronas. At Shell, he tested and help developed RTLSM FWI for sub-thrust prospects in Indonesia.
Key achievements include:
- Opportunity identification across basins in Southeast Asia including basin ranking for Shell Asia-Pacific New Ventures
- New country entry into Indonesia for Shell
- Regional and prospect scale seismic interpretation especially with subtle traps including rapid volume interpretation of broadband seismic over 60,000 sq. km 3D in deepwater Myanmar and an undrilled fault block in the Maharaja Lela field in Brunei
- Prospect generation and maturation, data room evaluation on deeper untapped reservoirs in Pohokura field (New Zealand) that had previously not been identified.
- Operations and wellsite geologist for NC4-1, NC4-1RDR, NC-6, and NC-7 (Malaysia) delivering 4-6 Tcf recoverable gas, Berkat-1 (Indonesia), Pyi Tagun-1 (Myanmar).
Keith is currently a senior geologist advising on an exploration and development programme in the Philippines.
Pei-Tze Kueh – Senior Production Technologist
Kueh has 26 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, with a strong track record in executing field production enhancement projects through surface and subsurface activities for oil and gas majors, services providers, and consulting companies in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, New Zealand and The Philippines.
His specialist skills include: optimizing well inflow and outflow performance; conceptual well and completion design; sand control management; artificial lift design and optimization; smart well design; WRFM; well integrity management, as well as gas and water injection.
Kueh’s experience includes working as the Lead Water Injection Specialist for Petronas SWIFT, providing expertise in water injection program situational analysis, assessment, benchmarking, and ranking in Malaysia.
He was also part of the SF30 drilling team in Malaysia, successfully completing four IGP wells, SFCS drilling with 7 OH SAS wells completed, and planning for SFDP-A drilling projects involving three wells.
Jamie Burgess – Geologist-Geochemist
Jamie is a Geoscientist with more than 25 years working experience in government and industry, including 17 years with Shell, most recently supporting asset operations across NW Australia and NW Borneo. This includes conducting an assessment of basin wide gas quality prior to Brunei Shell re-negotiating LNG contract terms. He also played a key role in assessing and predicting the H2S, mercury and wax risk for Shell’s Crux Field Development in the Browse Basin.
Jamie’s expertise spans well evaluation, prospect maturation, incremental development and process engineering in onshore and offshore projects. He has worked as a rock and fluid specialist for most of his career, including stints in Flow Assurance and Well, Reservoir and Facility Management, generating and driving projects at various parts of the value chain. His experience includea:
- Operational evaluation and assessment while drilling for rig-time decision making
- Fluid sampling, handling and analysis for contaminant, PVT and Geochemical analysis
- Source rock, reservoir facies and fluid assessment, feeding into near field and greenfield property predictions
- Process optimization, characterisation and trouble-shooting of product streams
- Containment monitoring, synthesis and execution of HSE oriented plans
- CCUS technology development and deployment
Jeff Roche – Petrophysicist
Jeff has four decades of experience as a Petrophysicist in exploration, appraisal and development projects globally. His key areas of expertise includes:
- Deterministic and probabilistic petrophysical evaluation of oil and gas reserves in conventional clastic and carbonate, including unconventionals and CCS
- Integrated petrophysical studies including reservoir characterization for input into static and dynamic models consisting of numerous 10-50+multiwell fields e.g. NW Shelf, PNG, Georgia, Romania, Bangladesh, North Sea (Norwegian Sector)
- Principal petrophysicist on major capital and expansion projects working as part of integrated multi-disciplinary teams
- Technical team lead for numerous MCPs SS Certification projects; open acreage and gazettal licence round reviews and economic-risk assessments
- Equity-determination-unitisation including due diligence projects achieving positive FID outcomes
TG Tan – Facilities Engineer
Thiam-Guan (TG) Tan is a Facilities Engineer with 34 years experience in the Upstream oil and gas industry, including 26 years with Shell. He has expertise in subsurface and surface field development activities, project execution and operating venture governance on some of the largest and most complex gas projects in the world. This includes responsibility for all technical aspects of Shell’s interests in Gorgon and Wheatstone, including the Gorgon LNG project and development of the Greater Gorgon area (>40 TCF).
TG started his career as a construction engineer with an oil and gas fabrication contractor. He joined Shell as a Front End Facilities Engineer then went on to other roles in field development, strategy, business development, implementation of business processes, and major project governance.
TG is currently the surface engineering lead for an exploration and development programme in the Philippines.
Volker Simon – Exploration and Development
Volker is an Exploration Manager with 30+ years industry experience, in locations globally including Brunei, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines as well as Europe. Key roles have included:
- Shell Exploration Manger Brunei: Annual Budget $300-400mln exploration well drilling, portfolio, including DW and HP shallow offshore and onshore, 3D/CSEM regional surveys and portfolio rejuvenation.
- Mature basin rejuvenation and new play projects in Malaysia and New Zealand.
- Chief Development Officer for field development venture start-ups in Tunisia, Malaysia and Oman.
- Shell General Manager HSSE for Shell asset acquisitions and divestments, Integrated Gas and Exploration Ventures globally.
- Non-executive Director for Albania Venture.
- Transition Lead for an independent energy company in Asia following their acquisition of an upstream asset from an IOC.
- Venture Development role for a pioneering geothermal technology.
Jankó Reinders – Field Development
Janko has more than two decades of industry experience in development and field management working in both senior technical staff and technical leadership positions. Key assignments and areas of expertise include:
- Justified, executed wells and managed well stock in multiple basins in North Sea, South China Sea and Tasman Sea. Track record in major flagship projects including Appomatox, Bonga/SW, Champion, Mangahewa, Montrose
- Global experience in field development, WRFM, new technology implementation and P&A justification and execution
- In-depth expertise in the WRFM opportunity maturation process. This includes justifying and and implementing artificial lift strategies. He has also developed Well Integrity Standards and lead multiple completion effectiveness optimization initiatives for new wells
- Access to a strong global technical network with different operators in multiple regions and major green and mature developments.
Joe Simonetti – GIS Analyst and Consultant
Joe has two decades of global experience as a GIS Analyst and Consultant within the oil and gas and mining resources industries. This includes a12 year career with Shell, embedded within exploration teams in various locations supporting conventional O&G projects across Australia, Asia and the Americas.
He delivered business impact across a diverse range of venture and growth activities. This included block acquisition, regional studies, play based exploration and portfolio maturation activities. He also played a key role in providing operational support for planning, execution and monitoring of seismic and geochemical surveys, drilling wells, HSSE, non-technical risk, logistics and commercial activities.
Adrian Chong – Well Engineer
Adrian has an oil and gas career spanning over 35 years in the oil and gas industry experience, of which 25 years was in Shell and the remaining in BP and Chevron.
He has specialized in well construction activities from a lifecycle perspective ranging from well planning, drilling, completions, well intervention/workover including plug and abandonment operations, across well types from conventional, multi-lateral and horizontal wells, small land operations to offshore HPHT and ERD projects.
He is also experienced in contracts strategy/negotiations, supervision of jack-up, tender barge and semi-submersible operations. He has also worked on various types of completion such as smart, single, dual, monobore, multilateral, horizontal and various type of gravel pack operations.
Prior to joining VGS and Associates, Adrian had been working for Chevron Australia in various capacities in the exploration/appraisal and development teams within the Drilling and Completion function.
Chris Hyde – Operations and HSSE
Chris is a senior Operations and HSSE management professional with 34 years of experience in the global energy sector. He has held Operations Management positions in nine different countries and was the Safety Manager for a portfolio of 10 companies including Shell Nigeria, Iraq, Philippines, Norway, Tunisia and Gabon.
Chris has driven safety leadership programmes in Shell Nigeria, Gabon, Malaysia, Tunisia and The Philippines. He is experienced, passionate and has an aptitude for coaching leadership teams to enable transformational change in culture and performance.
Neil Burton – HSSE and Social Performance
Neil is an oil and gas industry HSE specialist with 25 years of experience. He has a strong track record of successful leadership and safe execution of major projects in the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Denmark, UK, New Zealand, Italy and Spain. Key assignments have included:
- Tyra Redevelopment Project HSE Manager in Denmark – brownfield, greenfield and decommissioning projects for the Shell/Maersk Oil/Total joint venture
- HSE Delivery Manager for Shell Operated Projects in Asia, including greenfield projects in the Philippines and Malaysia and co-authoring of the Shell Global Projects HSE Guide
- Malampaya Project Phase 2 & 3 HSSE Lead, including community and social Investment programmes
- Country HSE & SD Manager for Shell New Zealand. This included project management of New Zealand’s first oil and gas offshore decommissioning
- HSE Adviser, Operations Team Leader, Production Chemist, Helicopter Rescue Winch Supervisor in Shell New Zealand.
Vicky Yawapongsiri – Contracts and Economics
Vicky has 21 years in oil and gas industry with a focus on economic valuation, fiscal regime, oil and gas development plans, gas commercialization, contract negotiations and due diligence. She has held key in-house commercial roles in ConocoPhillips and worked has a contractor for other oil majors as well as independents.
She has developed in-depth commercial expertise on oil and gas projects across Asia. This includes working on upstream and midstream projects in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Thailand, East Timor, Papua New Guinea and Australia.
Alan Bewley – Contracts
Alan has more than three decades of commercial experience in the international oil and gas industry including 15 years with Shell in commercial deal delivery, new business development acquisitions and divestments across Asia and Australasia.
He has in-depth expertise in the full range of contracts, commercial transactions, host government contracts and negotiations for upstream and midstream oil, gas and LNG. He was a senior member of Shell’s global team of experts on petroleum agreements and transactions. Key activities included multiple large scale and high value Shell transactions in New Zealand, East and West Coast Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia (Abadi LNG) Brunei, Philippines and China.
Cathal Smith – Contracts and Legal
Cathal has extensive experience in advising Australian and international clients on the
establishment and operation of major resource projects. He has a primary focus in the oil and gas sector including the negotiation of upstream activities, exploration, government and co-operation agreements, project structuring, operating agreements, farm-ins and major construction contracts. This experience has occurred in legal and commercial roles along all stages of the value chain and involved title, tenure and governmental issues, royalty interests, unitisations, regulatory compliance, governance, risk management and operational issues.
Cathal has participated in, and led, numerous executive management teams and is well versed in developing strong relationships with key stakeholders, including governments and regulatory authorities, to ensure the timely identification and achievement of goals. His extensive work with multinational clients has developed a strong understanding on how to effectively within a diverse range of cultural environments to resolve problems and secure client objectives.
Lloyd Watson – Aviation
Lloyd has 40 years industry experience in Helicopter and Fixed Wing Operations. He was the Shell Aircraft Director accountable for the safety of all operated, chartered and contracted aviation operations globally. His experience includes:
- Aviation operations, safety and de-risking for all mission types and remote piloted systems.
- Development and implementation of operational standards for the conduct of aviation for production and exploration business units.
- Competency requirements for aviation staff deployed across all Shell business units.
- Category Management for aviation responsible for contracting aviation services.
Prior to Shell, Lloyd was a Helicopter Pilot in the Royal Navy as a Helicopter Pilot and has spent 20 years flying offshore on operations globally.
Captain Gordip Singh – Marine Logistics
Captain Gordip Singh has 40 years of marine and shipping industry experience and is a leading expert in oil and gas related marine operations. He has undertaken both marine operations and HSEQ management at corporate levels as well as designing, implementing, communicating and coordinating health, safety and environmental programs for worksites with multinational companies in Malaysia, Nigeria and Angola. He has also undertaken senior roles in managing marine operations safely in offshore construction, hook up and commissioning.
Captain Gordip has also championed strategic planning, organization and execution of the ISM & HSEQ Management System including resource allocation, risk assessment and mitigation, audits, regulatory compliance, incidents investigation, loss prevention and training in marine logistics.