Dakota Plains Holdings Inc. (OTC: DAKP) has appointed Craig M. McKenzie as CEO.

McKenzie will also serve as the chairman of the board of directors. He replaces Gabriel G. Claypool, who will continue as president and has been appointed to serve as chief operating officer. With this transition, Claypool will provide direct oversight of the company’s rapidly expanding operations in the Williston Basin in North Dakota.

According to the release, McKenzie has over 27 years of experience in the global oil and gas industry and has worked in 24 countries. He has served as CEO of Toreador Resources Corp. and its merger successor, ZaZa Energy Corp. He also served as the CEO of Canadian Superior Energy Inc., the president BG Trinidad & Tobago of BG Group Plc, and in several senior operations, commercials and corporate positions of BP Plc.

Dakota Plains is in its fourth year of midstream operations with three active business segments each respectively focused on the marketing, transloading and trucking of crude oil and related products originating within the Williston Basin of North Dakota. Dakota Plains plans to expand its operations in New Town, N.D., and pursue additional growth opportunities in the Williston Basin to provide shareholders with exposure to a rapidly evolving industry segment and commodity oil prices, according to the release.

Dakota Plains Holdings Inc. is a vertically-integrated, midstream energy company based in Wayzata, Minn.