Howell provides linkage with Apache’s interests in the US

The female managing director is a rare breed in Perth, particularly in the resources industry, but Eve Howell is perfectly at ease with her role as regional vice-president and MD at Apache Energy Limited, a US-based company with a market capitalisation of $25 billion.

Ms Howell has worked her way up the ranks, and has a certificate from 2004 commemorating 20 years working for the company, although she caveats it by saying she has been “sold with an oilfield” during several takeovers and hasn’t actually worked for Apache for that period of time.

Apache has been operating in the offshore Carnarvon Basin for more than 11 years and plans a big drilling program for 2006 that involves 50 to 60 wells. Since its entry into Australia, the company has invested more than $A2 billion in acquisitions, field development and exploration programs.

Born in Sudan and undertaking a career with the British Geological Survey before doing some consulting, Ms Howell ended up in Australia on a three-month holiday that ended up at 25 years and counting.

“Maybe I have been fortunate in my career, and I find it amusing that people are often surprised when I tell them I am the MD of an oil company,” Ms Howell said.

“Certainly there are very few managing directors in town who are women, and the business community in Perth is very male dominated, but I don’t see the challenge as mine; the challenge is for men to adjust.

“I think the women working here find it comfortable to have an MD who is a woman and feel free to come through my door and chat, which may not be the case at all organisations.”

With her trademark deep chuckle, Ms Howell retells the story of an invitation she received to lunch at the WA Club about 10 years ago, and of being asked to meet people in the bar.

“I was tapped on the shoulder and told I wasn’t allowed in the bar; I can only imagine how horrified my host was,” she said.

“I think there is an element of that mentality left, and that women can miss out on what is going on because of the boys’ club, but I have never had any significant barriers.”

Ms Howell said her role in Perth was primarily as an enabler, to be the link between the US office and the Perth office, and that the best thing a manager could do was to know what challenges people had.

“I’m not an authoritarian manager, and try to make sure that the people here don’t have worry about what is going on in head office in Houston,” she said.

And for graduates who want to end up in her position, Ms Howell has a simple piece of advice: “Hard work, and find out what the business is about.”

•           MD and regional VP of Apache Energy Limited, a US-based oil and gas company with a market capitalisation of $25b.

•           Apache Energy Ltd holds 167 million barrels of oil equivalent in reserves, and currently operates production of about 37,000 barrels of oil and condensate per day (blpd), and 230 TJ/d of gas in WA.