Latest news with #CEO
Zawya
18 minutes ago
- Business
- Zawya
Etu Energias Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Joins African Energy Week (AEW) 2025 to Detail Strategies for Achieving 80,000 Barrels Per Day (BPD)
Edson dos Santos, Chairman and CEO of Etu Energias – Angola's largest private oil producer – has joined the African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies 2025 conference to discuss its plans for scaling-up operations across Angola's upstream and downstream sectors. The company plans to increase crude production to 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) by 2030 while expanding downstream distribution and lubricant production. Dos Santos' participation at Africa's largest energy event will offer insight into how Etu Energias will achieve this. Etu Energias' expansion plan is built on five key pillars, namely operational excellence, growth, financing, people and ESG. In 2024, the company reported its strongest financial results to date, achieving a 53% increase in net profit compared to 2023. During the year, the company also increased its portfolio of operated and non-operated assets from 6 to 15, with the company's oil reserves growing 2.5 times to reach 106 million barrels. By 2030, Etu Energias seeks to increase its reserves to 387 million barrels through investments in both exploration and development assets. At AEW: Invest in African Energies 2025, dos Santos will detail the company's future development plans. AEW: Invest in African Energies is the platform of choice for project operators, financiers, technology providers and government, and has emerged as the official place to sign deals in African energy. Visit for more information about this exciting event. Upstream, Etu Energias is undertaking an ambitious drilling and production plan in 2025, with ongoing projects including eight exploration projects, 10 development projects and seven redevelopment projects. Onshore, the company signed a Risk Service Contract for Block CON 4 in May 2025, granting the company a 25-year operating licensing for the block. Of this, five years is allocated for exploration while 20 years is allocated for production. Etu Energias is the operator of Block CON 4, alongside Block CON 1 – whereby the first phase of studies has been completed and a seismic survey has been defined. The survey targets 430 km of 2D data in the first phase. Meanwhile, Etu Energias continues its 3D seismic campaign at Block FS/FST. Deforestation and demining are on track for May 2025 while the first exploration well is expected to be spud this year. Offshore, the company plans to complete exploration studies for its operated Block 2/05 in 2025, with well-drilling targeted for 2025/2026. This follows an increase in block acquisitions in 2024, including in Block 2/05 from 30% to 36%, in Block 14 from 20% to 29%, in Block 14K from 10% to 14.5% and in Block 17/06 from 5% to 7.5%. Downstream, Etu Energias is expanding its retail and distribution network through the development of storage facility and lubricant infrastructure. The company launched a 1,000-ton-per-month lubricant line in 2024 in collaboration with Glide Petroleum and plans to start production in 2025. Plans to develop a storage and export terminal are also underway, with the company weighing options for an inland terminal or FSO lease. Further, Etu Energias plans to hold an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2026. The IPO will support efforts to raise capital as the company seeks new block opportunities in both the onshore and offshore market. The IPO will not only support debt reduction and capital raising, but enhancing the company's credibility. Access to a wider investment pool will further support the company's expansion plans in Angola. At AEW: Invest in African Energies 2025, dos Santos is expected to share further updates. 'Etu Energias is a prime example of an Angolan oil company unlocking significant value from Africa's oil and gas reserves. Through its diverse portfolio of exploration and development blocks, its commitment to sustainable and inclusive growth, and dedication to strengthening downstream distribution, the company is driving impactful growth in Angola's oil market. Looking ahead, investments made by Etu Energias will help chart a new future of energy security in southern Africa,' states Tomás Gerbasio, VP Commercial and Strategic Engagement, African Energy Chamber. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
Forbes
30 minutes ago
- Business
- Forbes
Quieting The Noise: The Surprising Leadership Power Of Daily Meditation
Shekar Natarajan is the founder and CEO of As a CEO, I spend most of my time making high-stakes decisions. I must balance a barrage of variables with a lot of unknowns. In high-pressure moments, the most valuable thing I can access is clarity. And the most reliable way I have found to create clarity is through meditation. This is not about wellness trends or personal transformation. It is about sharpening your ability to think, act and lead when it counts. Over the last decade, meditation has become one of the most important leadership tools I rely on. It has helped me make better decisions, inspire others in times of crisis and recover faster in moments of stress. My meditation journey began in 2015 when I attended a 10-day silent Vipassana retreat. Ten days with no speaking, no email, no phones. Just 10 hours of silent meditation every day. Your back aches, your knees hurt. On day three, you want to cry. On day four, you want to just pack up and leave. But by day seven, something shifts. The silence begins to reveal what's really going on beneath your waking consciousness. By day 10, you begin to understand how often your mind interrupts itself. You begin to understand yourself. Since then, I have returned to that practice several times. In 2017, after a period of personal and professional exhaustion, I spent 28 days at an Ayurvedic retreat in India. My mother had just emerged from a medical coma. I was still processing the loss of my father. I needed space to think and reset. I left behind everything, including my phone. By day four, I had energy again. And with that energy, I started painting. What began as a simple desire to learn how to draw eyes turned into hours of uninterrupted creative focus. I studied watercolor, acrylic and traditional Indian goldwork painting. The untapped creativity that was swirling in my busy brain now had an outlet and, as a result, my mind grew still, my attention exact. The combination of meditation and art gave me both discipline and expression. I have kept the practice ever since. Every nine months, I take time away to reset. Two weeks of uninterrupted mental clarity. No meetings. No noise. No decisions. And when I come back, I am sharper and ready for the uncertainties that are part of everyday life. During Covid, that clarity made a difference. While many companies paused, we moved quickly. Our team was being asked to shut down distribution centers. I took my five-day-old son and met with the governor of Kansas to make the case for staying open. I laid out a plan to protect our teams, support local businesses and serve the community. We stayed open. At the same time, I started writing daily notes to our associates. Honest, reflective and grounded in reality. Those notes spread through the company. People waited for them. That connection was only possible because I had created space to reflect each day. Courage is not about public displays or bold statements. It is about being willing to act when the path is not certain. Meditation gives me the ability to hear my own voice clearly enough to trust it. That kind of conviction is not noisy. It is quiet. But it is powerful. Most people say they do not have time to meditate. In my experience, you cannot afford not to. Meditation does not need to be sitting in silence for hours. It simply means creating intentional space for focus. I practice meditation in three ways. I start each morning with 20 minutes of meditation. I paint when I need a creative outlet. And I carve out time during the day to read, think and work on the problems that matter most. No multitasking. No distractions. Just clean, focused thought. These habits help me sort the signal from the noise. They help me see what matters. They help me act with less hesitation and more resolve. We talk a lot about physical health in leadership. Mental hygiene deserves the same attention. You cannot lead clearly if your mind is cluttered. You cannot make hard decisions if you are too exhausted to think. Meditation trains your mind to slow down. It teaches you to observe instead of react. Over time, that becomes your default. It also wakes up your intuition. As a leader, you are rarely working with perfect information. Often, you are making calls based on what feels right. Meditation helps you learn the difference between gut instinct and fear. It makes your decision-making more consistent and more courageous. This is not a soft skill. It is a performance skill. In a world full of pressure and speed, silence is a superpower. When everything demands your attention, the ability to be still is what sets you apart. Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
Entrepreneur
41 minutes ago
- Business
- Entrepreneur
5 Lessons I Learned the Hard Way About Business Success
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. I've been through it all — companies that soared, companies that sank, deals that looked like gold and turned out to be sand and partnerships that either multiplied value or silently killed it. If there's one brutal truth I've learned after decades of building, buying, selling and sometimes burying companies, it's this: Relationships — not ideas, capital or even timing — are the ultimate determinant of success. It's a lesson that no spreadsheet will teach you and no pitch deck will fully convey. But it's the one thing every founder, CEO, investor and partner needs to internalize if they want to build something that lasts. Let me explain through five unfiltered truths I learned the hard way — some through exits, some through bankruptcies. Related: How to Build and Sustain Deep, Meaningful Business Relationships (and Why It's the Key to Long-Lasting Success) 1. Bad partnerships are more expensive than bad products A bad product can be fixed. A misaligned partner? That's a cancer in the system. I once co-founded a company with incredible potential — strong unit economics, great early adoption and even some early buzz in the media. But internally, the leadership team was fractured. One partner prioritized short-term revenue. Another obsessed over product perfection. And I, caught between the two, tried to play referee. Guess what happened? We burned cash arguing. We stalled decisions. Morale tanked. Ultimately, the company died — not because of the market, but because we couldn't get out of our own way. Looking back, I now ask this before every deal: Do I want to be in a foxhole with this person when things go wrong? If the answer isn't a hell yes, it's a no. 2. Bankruptcy is a leadership failure, not a market failure Yes, markets change. Yes, industries shift. But most of the bankruptcies I've seen — including my own — weren't because of the economy. They were because we made poor decisions, delayed hard conversations and ignored red flags. We had a company that seemed unstoppable — fast-growing, flush with investor interest and scaling quickly. But internally, management was siloed. Sales leadership was misaligned with operations. Decisions were made based on ego instead of data. We ignored tension because things were "good enough." Until they weren't. When it collapsed, it was easy to point fingers at external market conditions. But the truth? We failed ourselves. That experience forever changed the way I build. Now, every leadership meeting starts with alignment. If leadership isn't rowing in the same direction, I don't care how good the boat is — it's going nowhere. Related: Want Strong Business Relationships? Avoid These 3 Mistakes. 3. Buyers don't buy products — they buy people When I've successfully exited companies, there's a pattern that shows up every time: We were aligned with the buyer on values, vision and execution style. One of our best exits came not because we had the best tech, but because the acquiring team said, "We want to work with you guys." They knew we had strong relationships across departments, high employee retention and a culture of transparency. Deals get done when there's trust. Period. It doesn't matter how great your EBITDA is if the buyer doesn't believe in your leadership or your people. If you're preparing to exit, ask yourself: Would you buy this company if you didn't know the numbers, but just knew the people running it? If the answer is no, you've got work to do. 4. Decision-making is a muscle — train it or lose it Poor decision-making doesn't show up all at once. It's a slow erosion — a hundred little moments when you defer, delay or delegate decisions you should own. One business I led started slipping when we over-delegated key choices to mid-management without ensuring those managers were aligned with the company strategy. Over time, execution drifted. Product launches missed the mark. Marketing lost focus. And we didn't notice until revenue plateaued. Strong companies don't just have good leaders — they have good decision-making systems. Now, in every company I touch, we prioritize decision hygiene. Clear frameworks. Accountability. Retrospectives. You can't outsource judgment. You have to train it. Related: 8 Strategies for Building Long-Lasting Business Relationships 5. The exit isn't the end — it's the mirror When you sell a company, the terms of that exit reflect everything you did right — or wrong. Great exits happen when: You have strong internal processes Your financials are airtight Your leadership team is trusted Your reputation precedes you Bad exits — or worse, failed exits — happen when: You patched things together just for the data room Buyers smell desperation You can't clearly explain how the company runs without you I've lived both sides, and I'll tell you: Nothing haunts an entrepreneur more than realizing they killed a great business by not focusing on the fundamentals early enough. So, what's the takeaway? If I could give one piece of advice to any founder building a startup today, it's this: Invest in relationships before you invest in features. Build trust before you build scale. Fix your internal operating model before you chase more revenue. Money follows alignment. Buyers follow leadership. Teams follow purpose. And if you get those right, the next big thing might just follow you.
Wall Street Journal
an hour ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Jamie Dimon: We Need to Engage With China on Trade
Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase's chief executive, said the U.S. should be engaging with China on trade. 'They're not scared, folks,' Dimon said about China in comments broadcast on CNBC. Dimon said he visited China recently and cast doubt on the notion that China would come back to America. "I wouldn't count on it," he said.
Globe and Mail
5 hours ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Overstaffed, overpaid and underperforming, the CPP investment fund is in need of a sharp course correction
This time they waited until page 41 to admit it. As with most things at the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, its annual reports have become increasingly bloated over the years. Once, the organization responsible for investing Canadians' public pension savings reported on its activities each year in a relatively straightforward fashion. The typical CPPIB annual report in those days was a relatively restrained 15,000 to 20,000 words. That was before 2006, when the CPP's surplus funds were still invested passively, that is in a way designed to track the broad market indexes. In that year, the fund switched to active management: picking individual stocks, bonds and other assets in an attempt to beat the market. Since then the fund's annual reports have become, essentially, extended advertisements for active management. They now run to more than 80,000 words: page after page of dense, jargon-filled and numbingly repetitive prose on the many arcane strategies and reams of research the fund has deployed in the quest to 'add value' – to earn a higher return, that is, than it would have had it just stuck to investing in the indexes. CPPIB CEO expects 'roller-coaster' year for investors after 9.3 per cent return in past fiscal year To be sure, the fund's managers will concede, this approach is more costly – much more costly. Where 20 years ago the CPPIB had just 150 employees and total costs of $118-million, it now has more than 2,100 employees and total expenses (not including taxes or financing costs) in excess of $6-billion. And yet, for all its eagerness to explain how it invests your money – the process – the fund is rather less keen to go into the results. This year's report is no exception. To be sure, there, in large type, is the headline figure: a rate of return of 9.3 per cent in the fiscal year ending March 31. As in previous years, the fund's managers are quick to congratulate themselves on this achievement. 'This year, we delivered solid returns for the Fund,' writes the fund's president, John Graham, crediting 'the disciplined execution of a forward-thinking strategy, by a high-performing team.' Now, 9.3 per cent certainly sounds impressive, unless you recall that equity markets generally were up wildly last year. The U.S. market returned more than 30 per cent in calendar 2024; Canada's, more than 20 per cent; other developed countries, an average of 12 per cent. Bonds earned much less, of course, but with any reasonable mix of stocks and bonds it would have been like falling off a log to earn 9.3 per cent. In fact, the CPP's traditional benchmark portfolio, a mix of 85 per cent stocks and 15 per cent bonds, earned 13.4 per cent last year – half again as much as the fund's team of disciplined, forward-thinking high-performers were able to generate. That's what you'd get just by buying the averages, or – what is the same thing – if you'd just picked stocks at random. That, however, is not the point. Any one year you could put down to bad luck. But the CPP fund didn't just underperform the indexes last year. It has done so, on average, ever since it switched to active management. That's the admission you find buried on page 41 (it was on page 39 last year): since fiscal 2007, 'the Fund generated an annualized value added of negative 0.2 per cent.' Compound that 0.2 per cent annual shortfall over 19 years, and it adds up to more than $70-billion in forgone income, on assets that now total $714-billion. The fund's managers have spent nearly two decades and a total of $53-billion trying to beat the market, only to produce a fund that is nearly 10-per-cent smaller than it would be had they just heaved darts at the listings. That's not a comment on the skills of its employees. It's a comment on the strategy. The best managers in the world regularly underperform the market, especially after costs are taken into account – two thirds in any given year, nearly all of them over longer time frames. It's one of the most well-studied phenomena in the literature. Which is why many large pension funds have given up trying, switching from active to passive management. Still, if the fund's managers can't be blamed for this performance, neither should they be rewarded for it. Which is the other scandal here: notwithstanding the fund's indifferent returns, everyone there is making out like bandits – not just in the executive suite, whose five highest-paid inhabitants earned nearly $5-million apiece on average in salaries and benefits last year, but across the organization, whose 2,100-plus employees were compensated to the tune of more than $500,000 on average. CPP Investments is an organization that is literally out of control. It is long past time it was reined in and given new directions.
