Northern Petroleum says that its wholly owned Netherlands subsidiary, Northern Petroleum Nederland B.V. ("NPN"), has appointed Brian A. Hepp, Northern's Director of Group Operations, and Cornelis Nicolaas (Nico) Tielens, NPN's Operations Manager and Acting Country Manager, as directors.

Mr Hepp, a Canadian national, has been Northern's Director of Group Operations since January 2006. Since joining Northern, Brian has directed all of the Group's drilling and development operations, including the development of the Grolloo, Geesbrug, Brakel and Wijk en Aalburg gas fields. In total he has over 28 years of international experience in design, drilling, production operations and petroleum field management with both major and small producers in North America and Europe.

Mr Hepp has represented NPN as an active member of the Executive Committee of The Netherlands Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Association ("NOGEPA") since NPN joined the organisation in 2006. NOGEPA promotes the common interests of all companies holding licenses to explore for, develop and produce hydrocarbons both on and offshore in The Netherlands.

Brian holds a Masters Degree in Administration and a Bachelor of Engineering degree. He is a Registered Engineer in Canada, a Chartered Engineer in the UK and Europe and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Mr Tielens, a Netherlands national, has been NPN's Operations Manager since July 2006 and also Acting Country Manager since the start of 2010. Prior to joining NPN, Mr Tielens spent 23 years in the service side of the oil and gas industry, mainly in the Dutch onshore and North Sea offshore sectors, and has extensive operational experience in well and production operations. Mr. Tielens previously held various onshore supervisory and management positions before becoming General Manager for two different Multinational Service Company's Continental Europe operations immediately prior to joining NPN as Operations Manager.

Nico holds a Bachelor degree in Civil Engineering, has held the Chairman's role in the well services group of IRO (the association of oil and gas service providers in The Netherlands) as well as serving as a Board member of IRO. Since joining NPN he has been an active member of the Operations Committee of NOGEPA.

Following these appointments Derek Musgrove and Birger Polkamp have retired as directors of NPN.

Derek Musgrove, Managing Director of Northern, stated, "NPN has brought three gas fields into production, with another to follow imminently. It has become a significant gas producer and project manager. Following these achievements, it is an appropriate moment for these changes to be made to the NPN Board. Further appointments to the NPN Board are expected in due course, reflecting the company's increase in size and activities.

The fact that NPN has an excellent safety record is very much a credit to both Brian and Nico. I was, and will remain, thankful for their persistent diligence on behalf of all employees and stakeholders.

The Board of Northern also wishes to express its gratitude to Birger Polkamp for his work and guidance over the last five years, the formative period of the company. NPN's current activities are a reflection of his efforts. We are delighted to retain his services as a Commercial Adviser to the NPN Board."

Tags: Northern Petroleum