Progress

Sometime in 1977, my career took another step forward when I was promoted to the role of Chief Petroleum Engineer. That probably happened more because so many experienced people had already been transferred out, than because I was a good candidate. Whatever the reason, being in the right place at the right time seemed to be an attribute of mine. However, the position was sort of the linchpin, or maybe the meat in the sandwich, between the national oil company, ADNOC, and the Western shareholders. I think I got two to three phone calls every day from ADNOC trying to tell me what they wanted, and then having to balance that against the technical direction from the vastly experienced professionals from Shell, Esso, etc. It was a constant grind.

As I mentioned earlier Mike, Simon and I had imported the very first water-ski boat into Abu Dhabi. Of course that opened the floodgates and speed boats became “de rigueur”. Anyway, we used the boat every weekend to go camp on a sandy mini island to drink beer and Pimms. We did become very proficient water skiers and learned to perform a variety of tricks, such as skiing seated on a chair, rounding the island doing the Full Monty, and even forming a pyramid of five skiers! By 1977, both Simon and Mike had become parents and in May 1977, Liz and I became the proud parents of a baby boy.

When we first arrived in Abu Dhabi there was a beachside building called The Beach Hotel…what else? This place provided the nearest experience to European entertainment that it was possible to have. There was a dance floor, a band, and an excellent menu all situated in “the ballroom”. I think they even had a wine menu! A variety of shady characters visited the place including SAS soldiers in mufti on leave from whatever they were up to in Oman. Anyway, all this was a little over the top for Abu Dhabi and so after a year or so the authorities closed it. Years later it was turned into the very first maternity hospital in the country, outfitted from the UK with all the necessary gear and staffed with experienced nurses from the UK. It opened a couple of weeks before Pierce was due and so he was among the first, if not the first baby born in the new maternity hospital. It was immensely exciting to bring mother and baby home. We threw a big, big party to celebrate and I think I had ordered some 60 bottles of champagne. Anyway, we ran out, the ADPC GM was at the party and noticed, and as we lived near his house he was able to call in liquid reinforcements! We also baptized Pierce in the small local church which nonetheless belonged to the Parish of Jerusalem. And although there were a number of cameras present I believe none had any film in them!

Fun days were taking Pierce to the beach and letting him splash around. Less fun nights were spent driving up and down the corniche so that the car’s A/C would help to settle him to sleep.

We had a live-in Indian maid from Goa named Roman and somewhere around now we moved house again to finally live on the compound in one of the original well-built houses beside the office. After eight years, we had finally arrived! The office, of course, was now four times the size of the original. By this time also the shareholders were placing their own people into the company. So there were cliques of French (from Total), Dutch (Shell), Brits (BP), and a couple of Americans, so life, and especially social life, was interesting.

Even more interesting was the arrival of a beautiful baby girl in June 1978, also delivered in the Corniche maternity hospital.

Aisling was a placid, happy baby in contrast to her older brother.

Around this time I think that the other partners in the boat had been transferred out so there was far less boating and beachgoing. When the Mobil reps would come through I would ask/beg to be taken out of Abu Dhabi and I do think they tried, but the local company management was somewhat new and I was allegedly too critical to move out. Bah, humbug.

Then in 1979, the Islamic Revolution occurred in Iran and the expat staff from there were evacuated to Athens. In due course we absorbed 4 or 5 Americans from Mobil and Exxon, which I welcomed.

In February 1980 my father died. Although he had cancer, he died suddenly and unexpectedly of complications from a prostate operation. Because I was working in such a remote location, by the time I got the news there was no possibility of getting to Ireland in time for the funeral.

And then, amazingly, I got the news I had been longing for. I was to be transferred to Mobil’s head office in New York City sometime during the summer of 1980. You might say that it was a move from the ridiculous to the sublime!