New CFO to join Maersk Drilling in early 2021

Danish offshore drilling contractor Maersk Drilling has appointed a new Chief Financial Officer as its current CFO is planning to leave the company early next year.

Maersk Drilling said on Wednesday that its board of directors has appointed Christine Morris as the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and member of the Executive Management with effect from 5 January 2021.

The appointment follows the decision by Jesper Ridder Olsen, announced on 31 July 2020, to pursue another opportunity outside Maersk Drilling, the company said.

According to the rig owner, Christine Morris has solid experience from the oil and gas industry and 25 years of broad finance experience, including CFO and Treasurer positions for US public and private corporations.

Morris also has a successful track record of leading global finance organisations as well as in-depth experience with capital markets, corporate finance and M&A.

Claus V. Hemmingsen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Maersk Drilling says: “Christine brings strong qualifications and a wealth of experience from publicly listed companies in global industries, including extensive experience from the oil and gas industry. Along with significant execution and management expertise, this makes her an excellent fit for this position”.

Jørn Madsen, Chief Executive Officer of Maersk Drilling says: “With her strong industry experience and financial background, she will be well-positioned to further develop our business transformation agenda. We’re on a very exciting journey as a company, adapting to a rapidly changing business environment, and I am confident that Christine will bring new, valuable insights and ideas to our Executive Leadership Team”.

Christine Morris said: “I am very excited to join Maersk Drilling as the potential for value creation is significant, given its strong balance sheet, customer relations and operational excellence. I look forward to partnering with Jørn and the team to continue building on the success of the organisation and further increase shareholder value”.

Jesper Ridder Olsen will remain at Maersk Drilling until the end of January 2021 to ensure a smooth handover process.

In related news, Maersk Drilling was this week awarded a contract by Austria’s OMV for the provision of a jack-up drilling rig for an exploration well offshore Norway.

OMV will use the Maersk Integrator jack-up rig to drill one exploration well in the Ommadawn prospect in the production license 970 in the Norwegian part of the North Sea.