Michael is a marine, HSE and renewable energy specialist. He has 35 years’ project management and consultancy experience for oil and gas companies, the European Commission and government agencies. His key skills areas are risk management, option evaluation, cost benefit analysis, due diligence, consultation and strategic planning. Based in Orkney he has had the opportunity to observe first hand the socio-economic impacts of oil and gas development in small island communities, from planning to decommissioning. He is also active within the renewable energy sector.

Michael started his career with BP as a drilling fluids engineer. This work led him to researching and developing greener approaches to drilling fluids with staff contracts with BP and Shell. He then broadened his skills in the environmental sector, with advisory roles within international oil companies, the EU INOGATE programme and the governments of Georgia and Kazakhstan. He has enjoyed a number of roles as senior ESIA specialist for oil and gas projects requiring finance from the IFC and EBRD and was the Early Oil HSE Manager for the giant Kashagan project in Kazakhstan.

His renewable energy portfolio over the last 15 years includes strategic planning (onshore wind developments and grid expansion), concept development (hydrogen, V2G), operations (UK CDM and HSE for marine energy), value assurance (wave and tidal devices) and community energy projects. Relevant project experience includes: due diligence audits of environmental risk associated with the acquisition of offshore multi-platform & export assets in SE Asia and Caspian Sea; due diligence audits for EBRD in the CIS; support to operators on IFC compliance on multi-billion dollar projects in the CIS and Africa; Interim HSE Director for construction of $3 billion ADCOP pipeline in UAE; and identification and management of HSE and business risks in the oil and gas and renewable sectors. Michael is based in the UK and holds a BSc in Biochemistry from Leeds University and a MSc in Biochemical Research from Oxford University.

Areas of Expertise

• Risk management
• Option evaluation
• Cost benefit analysis
• Due diligence
• Consultation
• Strategic planning
• Shale gas
• Renewable energy