Drillsearch is headhunting a new Chief Executive to replace Brad Lingo, who has suddenly resigned and is leaving the company immediately.

The announcement by the Sydney-headquartered company said that Lingo was leaving by mutual agreement and Chief Operating Officer Walter Simpson had been appointed Acting CEO as the search for a successor, both from Australia and overseas, was underway.

Simpson joined Drillsearch in March from BG Group subsidiary QGC and came onboard with more than 30 years’ experience worldwide in oil and gas, including Baker Hughes and BP.

Chairman Jim McKerlie said: “Drillsearch developed a comprehensive succession plan several years ago as part of building our organizational capability.

“As we have grown, we have introduced high caliber people that bring the talent required for the next stage of the company’s development. This planning is evidenced by the board renewal undertaken a few years ago and by Walter’s appointment as COO and 2IC to Brad Lingo during the last financial year. He will retain the focus on delivering our budget and plan for FY2016 whilst the search is conducted.”

Drillsearch said the board felt that the company would benefit from fresh ideas and different expertise to set itself up for the next phase of growth. The board had decided that Lingo would leave immediately to ensure clear leadership and minimal distractions.

Lingo’s six-year tenure at the helm saw Drillsearch transformed from a junior explorer into a leading mid-tier oil and gas company boasting production of 3 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe). The company recently completed its biggest-ever work program, including 12 new discoveries in the last financial year.

Drillsearch said its Cooper Basin operations provided a strong platform to consider new opportunities and it would continue to grow its business organically and through value accretive acquisitions, while looking further afield to deliver the next phase of growth.

McKerlie said: “We are reviewing our strategy of a singular focus on the Cooper Basin. Our Cooper Basin business is well developed and we will continue to work hard at this. However, we must actively look to the future and make sure we continue to deliver growth to our shareholders.

“Drillsearch has developed a robust and proven approach to exploration and development and we have an extremely capable team to deliver this, led by Walter Simpson who brings to the acting CEP role a proven track record of project delivery in multiple jurisdictions.

“This approach is now in our DNA and we believe we have a compelling and repeatable business model. We will look for the best opportunities to apply that model, be that in the Cooper or other Australian basins, or in basins in time zones that we can easily manage from Australia.”