Aker BP said Jan. 17 that David Torvik Tønne is joining the Norwegian E&P’s executive management team as CFO as part of a reorganization of the company’s finance functions.

David Torvik Tønne is joining the Norwegian E&P’s executive management team as CFO as part of a reorganization of the company’s finance functions. (Source: Aker BP ASA)

As a result, the company’s former CFO, Alexander Krane, is set to move to a position as investment director at Aker ASA, a Norwegian holding company that holds a 40% stake in Aker BP.

CEO Karl Johnny Hersvik said in a statement: “Alexander has been fundamental in building Aker BP as we see it today. I’ve been working closely with Alexander since 2014. His efforts, abilities and enormous capacity has been invaluable to me.”

Krane has served as CFO at the company since 2012, during which time he helped lead the company through the 2016 merger between the Norwegian operations of BP Plc (NYSE: BP) and the Det norske oil firm owned by Norwegian billionaire Kjell Inge Roekke. The merger resulted in the creation of Aker BP, which, according to a recent Reuters report, has become the second largest license holder on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.

In a capital markets update on Jan. 17, Aker BP said it aims to drill 15 exploration wells in 2019, including several wells which were postponed last year. The company said it would also raise its capex by a third to $1.6 billion between 2018 and 2019, and plans to boost exploration spending by 40% to $500 million over the same period.

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Additionally, Lene Landøy, who joined Aker BP in 2017, was also named to the company’s executive management team on Jan. 17 as a director with responsibility for strategy and business development. She previously served as vice president of strategy for portfolio and analysts and, prior to joining Aker BP, led Equinor’s (NYSE: EQNR) business development unit on the Norwegian shelf.

Tønne (pictured above), who also joined Aker BP in 2017, previously served as vice president of corporate controlling in the company. Prior to Aker BP, he worked for seven years in The Boston Consulting Group’s oil and gas team.

The organizational changes will take place Feb. 1. Both Tønne and Landøy will report to Hersvik.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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