Management Team
Elson J. McDougald - CEO and Chairman of the Board
- Over 46 years of experience in the oil and gas services business.
- Chairman of Savanna Energy Services Corp. (“SVY”) from August 2006 to May 2008.
- Founding Chairman, President and CEO of Western Lakota Energy Services Inc. from 2001 to 2006.
- Founding Chairman and CEO of Tetonka Drilling Inc., 1997 to 2000.
- Prior thereto Founder, Chairman, President and CEO of Laredo Drilling Ltd.
- Currently, a director of CCR Technologies Ltd., Decision Dynamics Technology Ltd., 3MC Stockfarms Ltd. and Dynacrest Farms Inc.
- Past director or Chairman of Enquest Energy Services Corp., Phoenix Technology Income Fund, the Alberta Treasury Branch, Alberta Petroleum Equipment Company Ltd., Lakeside Farm Industries Ltd. and Vencap Equities Alberta.
W. Randy Hawkings - President, COO and Director
- Over 29 years of experience in the oilfield services sector, including over 22 years of drilling engineering, both domestically and internationally, and over 7 years of drilling contractor experience, including new rig construction and footage drilling.
- Was a Principal of Enercon International and Enercon Engineering, providing drilling project management services for various oil companies in Western and Eastern Canada, West Texas in the United States, as well as Argentina, Bolivia and Venezuela in South America.
- Vice President and COO of Western Lakota Energy Services from 2003 to 2006
- Vice President and General Manager of the Lakota Drilling Division for Savanna Energy Services from 2006 to 2007.
- Prior to Enercon and Western Lakota, Mr. Hawkings was employed as a drilling engineer for Ladd Exploration Company, Hi-Tower Drilling and Canadian Superior Oil.
- Mr. Hawkings has a Bachelor of Applied Science (Mechanical Engineering) from the University of British Columbia and is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA).
Michael (Cannon) Smith - VP & General Manager - US
- Over 25 years experience in the oilfield services sector in Southeast Saskatchewan. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Smith was a field supervisor for Ensign Energy Services where he managed 8 drilling rigs from 2005 to 2008.
- Rig manager for Big Sky Drilling Ltd. (acquired by Ensign Energy in 2003) where he retained the same drilling crew for 7 years without any turnover of the drilling team.
- Mr. Smith had been with Big Sky Drilling Ltd. or Ensign Energy Services until joining the Company.
Lawrence Kolasa - VP Rig Construction
- Over 24 years experience in the oilfield services and drilling rig construction business.
- Field supervisor for Western Lakota responsible for constructing all of Western Lakota’s rigs (45).
- Rig manager for Tetonka Drilling Inc., where he constructed 3 rigs.
- Rig manager for Precision Drilling Corp., where he assisted in the construction of 7 rigs.
- Formally also with Sedco Drilling and ADECO Drilling.
Terry Kuiper - VP & General Manager - Canada
- Over 22 years of experience in the drilling and service rig industry
- Prior to joining CanElson, Mr. Kuiper worked in various management capacities including contracts manager, contracts representative, field superintendant and safety & personnel manager with an oilfield services company and its predecessor companies.
- 15 years of field experience, working his way to Rig Manager.
Robert Skilnick - Chief Financial Officer
- 10 years of experience in a broad range of corporate finance and accounting activities.
- Controller of Bow Valley Energy Ltd. for one year, where he assisted with a financial restructuring and eventual corporate sale.
- 8 years with KPMB in Calgary and abroad, most recently as Senior Manager in Calgary where he served a broad range of clients including mid-sized oil and gas service companies, E&P companies and various international financial services companies.
Murray Hinz, CA - Interim VP Finance
- Over 14 years experience in accounting, auditing and consulting services.
- The President of Marazul Consulting Inc., an international financial consulting firm.
- Controller and financial analyst for Ritz Carlton Resort Development in Grand Cayman.
- Financial advisor to Deloitte &Touche (Grand Cayman) from 2001 to 2004 and previous to that, he held the same position with PriceWaterhouseCoopers (Calgary).
- Accountant for Kenway Mack Slusarchuk Stewart in Calgary from 1994 to 2000.
- Has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan, is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Alberta and is a Certified Financial Planner.
