Encana taps former BP exec as CEO

Canadian oil and gas producer Encana Corp. has tapped as its new chief executive officer a key official for British oil giant BP in the aftermath of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The Calgary-based company said its board has named Doug Suttles as president and CEO. He also will serve as a director.

Suttles was chief operating officer of BP’s exploration and production unit at the time an undersea well owned by the company blew out 50 miles off the coast of Louisiana. The blowout triggered an explosion on the Transocean-owned Deepwater Horizon rig that killed 11 men. The resulting oil spill was the worst offshore spill in U.S. history.

Read more: BP executive in spotlight during spill is retiring

After the disaster, Suttles was a key point-person for the company. He often briefed the media on the company’s efforts to cap the runaway well, and he accompanied reporters to view BP’s cleanup efforts along the coast.

Suttles also was among the executives at BP who briefed U.S. officials in the aftermath of the spill.

As part of its still-pending legal action against BP, the U.S. government sought a  number of materials, including all documents related to the preparation of a May 19, 2010 email from Suttles to Coast Guard Rear Adm. Mary Landry, who has since retired. A judge has ruled that some of the batch of documents sought by the Justice Department and Transocean should be turned over.

Suttles retired from BP in 2011.

Encana said it chose Suttles as its CEO after an extensive global search. Clayton Woitas, a director and designated future chairman of the board, said in a statement that Suttles  was chosen in part for “his strategic leadership capabilities, demonstrated communications skills, and track-record of building strong organizations of similar size and scope.”

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