Jack Hightower, the founder and former chief executive officer of Pure Resources in Midland, Texas, has assembled a group of former Pure executives to form Celero Energy, to acquire, explore and exploit onshore and offshore North America. The new E&P company has just completed its initial equity financing, which is being provided by management and Quantum Energy Partners of Houston, whose limited partners include affiliates of General Motors Asset Management and Goldman, Sachs & Co. "Our creative approach at Pure helped us lead the industry in profitability metrics. This approach is the foundation for Celero's business strategy," says Hightower, chairman, president and CEO. "Our goal is to complete several billion dollars of transactions during the next few years. Quantum Energy Partners and its investor group's backing will allow Celero the equity capital necessary to be competitive." A long-time Midland resident and prominent Permian Basin producer, Hightower formed Titan Exploration in 1995. It later merged with Unocal's (NYSE: UCL) West Texas assets to become Pure Resources in 2000, and the company then went public. In late 2002, Pure was sold back to Unocal for $1.7 billion. It was the 15th-largest E&P company at the time, with 1.5 trillion cu. ft. equivalent of reserves. Joining the Celero team are Rodney Woodard, executive vice president and chief operating officer; Bruce Selkirk, chief financial officer; and Vince Borrello, vice president of evaluations and business development. Two former business-development executives at Pure-Dan Colwell and Tom Moore-are equity partners in Celero and will contribute to its growth efforts. "We are excited to have the opportunity to invest in Jack and his team at Celero," says Wil Van Loh, Quantum principal. "Our 10-year relationship has been very profitable." Celero may be reached at 432-686-1883 in Midland.
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