Legal team size: Two

Major legal advisers/ external counsel: Winston Strawn, Sheppard Mullin, Skadden, Jackson Walker, Scott Douglass

How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crises, and how does your legal strategy align with the broader business strategy to ensure the organisation’s resilience?

Deep Blue has a collaborative culture built on communication as a fundamental principle. We ensure alignment and manage risk through open and continuous communication. I stay up to date on industry concerns with frequent meetings with water management and oil and gas upstream and midstream general counsel – these yield insight that helps my executive team proactively manage industry-wide risks affecting Deep Blue. I meet with my executive team daily to discuss and address issues and developments in real time. Lastly, I ensure the legal department participates in initial discussions on all significant decisions and issues – enabling us to plan and manage risk up front, rather than addressing issues after they come up.

In your opinion, what are the main trends affecting your work now (these can be legal, political, economic or business-based)?

The presidential administration change will have several impacts on Deep Blue’s business.

Since Deep Blue primarily provides water management services to oil and gas producers, changes to energy policy with the new administration will affect our work – increasing focus on supply chain/vendor management and M&A. Energy policy changes will positively impact oil and gas production and investment, but with the expectation of higher volumes comes lower sustained commodity prices, which will increase pressure on oilfield services companies and Deep Blue competitors and encourage consolidation in oilfield services and water management. This will provide Deep Blue increased M&A opportunities in the water management space and opportunities to pursue supply chain efficiencies.

Federal regulatory initiatives initiated during the current administration that place significant burdens on Deep Blue (i.e. FTC non-compete rules, EPA emissions targeting, Corporate Transparency Act, and other attempts by federal agencies to appropriate state regulatory functions) will likely be pulled back by the new administration, which will help Deep Blue better service its oil and gas producer customers.

A primary function of our legal department is prioritising and advancing long term strategic initiatives, including ingraining a culture of information sharing and establishing processes and procedures on par with public companies – specific 2025 priorities include:

Establishing a single repository for critical legal, commercial and financial information with realistic, implementable updating processes ensuring the best information is available;

Adjusting contracting strategies to leverage vendor consolidation and pressure on oilfield services companies to increase supply chain and reducing exposure to vendor financial difficulties/bankruptcies and associated claims against Deep Blue;

Refining regulatory, HR, insurance, invoicing, vendor and commercial processes to address current market conditions.