Mike acquired a B. Sc. in Geology & Environment at Oxford Brookes University in 1976 before completing his Ph. D. at St Andrews University on the Geology of Lower Paleozoic rocks in Southern Scotland.

He joined Texaco in 1979 and worked in the North Sea and Angola (including many stints at wellsite). In 1983 he joined International Energy Development Corporation (IEDC), a company set up with World Bank support to assist developing countries explore and develop their oil and gas assets. In 1985, IEDC was taken over by Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) and Mike moved to Kuwait in 1986.

Between 1986 and 2007 Mike held a variety of roles in KUFPEC, including Chief Geologist and Manager of Evaluations. During this period the company grew from having no production to 70,000 boepd, despite a decade-long moratorium on new ventures in the 1990’s, following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. It was during this time that Mike’s remit moved from purely technical matters to more commercial elements and negotiations.

In 2007, Mike joined a start-up company as CEO. GPX International is a private Kuwait upstream company focused on the Middle East & North Africa. He created and defined the company’s strategy and put a team in place to carry this out.  During his time with GPX International they acquired six upstream projects.

During his career Mike has worked in most aspects of the upstream business including operations, exploration, appraisal & development, as well as bid rounds, acquisitions & disposals. He has worked as the head of multi-disciplinary teams involving technical, legal, commercial and financial personnel and with many different cultures & nationalities.

After 24 years of living in the Middle East, Mike has decided to move back to the UK and is looking to use his skills, experience and networks in the industry in a consulting or advisory capacity.