ConocoPhillips Names CFO Andy O’Brien CEO as Profit Reaches $3.9 Billion

ConocoPhillips has named Chief Financial Officer Andy O’Brien as its next chief executive officer, succeeding longtime leader Ryan Lance in September as the top independent U.S. oil and gas producer reports a surge in second-quarter profit and completes a major asset restructuring.

Lance, who has led the Houston-based producer since its 2012 spin-off from refining giant Phillips 66, will transition to executive chairman ahead of his 65th birthday next year. Konnie Haynes-Welsh, currently vice president of finance and controller, will take over as senior vice president and chief financial officer.

The leadership handoff arrives as ConocoPhillips posted second-quarter net income of $3.9 billion, nearly double the $2 billion recorded in the same period last year. Higher crude prices driven by conflict involving Iran helped propel earnings, supporting a market capitalization of approximately $140 billion—just below its record high reached in late March.

Robert Niblock, Conoco lead independent director, credited Lance with shaping the company following its separation into a standalone upstream enterprise. “[Lance] set the course for the newly formed independent ConocoPhillips in 2012, and during his tenure, the company became a recognized leader within the sector as a global upstream company. The strength of the company today and its compelling outlook for the future is a direct result of Ryan’s vision and leadership,” Niblock said in a statement.

Niblock noted that O’Brien, a company veteran who started as a financial analyst in England in 1997, is positioned to drive the next stage of growth. “[O’Brien] is the right person to lead our company into its next phase. He brings a deep knowledge of our business, a strong track record of execution and has played a key role in making ConocoPhillips successful,” Niblock added.

O’Brien worked across operations in Scotland and Canada before relocating to Houston in 2004, subsequently ascending to vice president in 2020 and executive vice president of strategy, commercial, and CFO last year.

Parallel to the executive moves, ConocoPhillips finalized $1.7 billion in noncore U.S. asset sales, including holdings in Oklahoma, South Texas’ Eagle Ford Shale, the Gulf of Mexico, and lower-margin segments of the Permian Basin. The transactions fulfilled the producer’s broader $5 billion divestiture target, allowing it to reallocate capital while preserving its most profitable position in West Texas’ Permian and expanding internationally through recent agreements in Iraq and Syria.