Veteran Cathedral Energy Services CEO announces plan to retire in April
Scott MacFarlane was chief financial officer from 2001 to 2013, when he was promoted to chief executive
CALGARY — Cathedral Energy Services Ltd. says veteran CEO Scott MacFarlane plans to retire from the Calgary-based directional and horizontal drilling company in April.
MacFarlane was chief financial officer from 2001 to 2013, when he was promoted to chief executive. He played a central role in the company’s transition to an income trust in 2002 and return to a corporation in 2009, along with expanding its presence in Western Canada and the United States.
In a news release, Cathedral said its annual revenue grew from $23.4 million in 2001 to a high of $275 million in 2014.
An energy industry downturn that began in 2015 reversed that trend and the company posted $120 million of revenue in 2019. The near collapse of drilling earlier this year resulted in its revenue in the first half of 2020 falling to $28 million from $70 million in the first six months of last year.
In April, Cathedral announced measures to deal with the slump that included cutting its office and shop staff by 22%, while the remaining Canadian non-field staff moved to a four-day work week with a corresponding 20% reduction in salary.
The company also cut its director fees and CEO and executive vice-president salaries by 25%.
“Scott has proven himself as a respected executive leader and played a key role in the company reaching a number of milestones,” said Cathedral chairman Rod Maxwell, listing the company’s growth, adoption of new technologies and “adept navigation” during challenging economic conditions in 2016 and 2020.