Women in Energy: Carri Lockhart, Dril-Quip

Presented by:

Carri Lockhart looked up to women in leadership roles until she was able to become one herself. As the first female field production supervisor with Marathon Oil, she worked hard to cultivate a progressive and developmental environment for her women colleagues to learn and grow within their field.

Working in oil and gas has taken Lockhart all across the world, learning new skills in each place. After growing up in Montana, her career allowed her to work on projects in Alaska, Nigeria and Angola as well as in Norway for her former high-ranking role with Equinor.

“I don’t think I would be where I am today without being flexible and taking on some of the roles I did,” Lockhart said.

Lockhart will be moving back to the U.S. soon. She recently stepped out of Equinor’s Corporate Executive Committee to move home but will stay with the company until June 30.

“My family and I moved every two to three years my entire career,” she said. “There is no doubt that we did make personal sacrifices. However, my husband has always been very supportive. I met some great people, experienced wonderful places and worked on fantastic opportunities.”

She and her husband of nearly 22 years share four children together.

From NASA to Nigeria

“I had great aspirations to become an aeronautical engineer then work for NASA. However, I received a scholarship for petroleum engineering, so I decided to enroll in petroleum and complete the basic engineering courses prior to transferring to aeronautical. My first internship sealed the deal. I have had some great projects and roles in my career. Perhaps the most memorable are projects in Lagos, Nigeria, and Luanda, Angola. It was less about the project and more about the people. These experiences gave me a different perspective on many things, including dilemmas we face today in the energy transition related to energy security.”

“Field experience is where you really learn the fundamentals of safety and operations. I use those fundamentals every day. My advice: spend time getting your hands dirty in the field.” 

Developing executive-level skills

“Even before I joined the industry, I knew I wanted to be an executive. I was even bold enough to mention it in my first job interview. As an executive, I want to make a difference in the energy sector, and I want to be a role model who motivates and inspires the next generation of talent, female leaders in particular. I have always been quite purposeful with my personal and career development. I have appreciated that I will learn nearly as much as I contribute to each role. There is always someone with a different skill or perspective in which to grow. Perhaps the most formative were those assignments in which I had no real interest in taking. Never say never. Twice I said I would not work in a particular discipline. In both, I ended up learning a great amount, developing my strategic and commercial skillset. Don’t be afraid to take on roles outside of your comfort zone. These are often the roles that are the most impactful and personally rewarding.”

Click here for a full list of “25 Influential Women in Energy” honorees for 2022.