Who We Are
OFFICERS
DIRECTORS
SHAREHOLDERS
OFFICERS
Brad Murray, President & CEO
Mr. Murray has held senior roles in several energy companies involved in upstream gas exploration/production/storage, hydrocarbon processing, energy transportation (pipelines), power generation, and facility design/analysis. Mr. Murray has been responsible for business development, corporate strategy, resource planning and evaluation, financial evaluations, marketing, contract negotiations, project management/operations, procurement/construction, and technical analysis/design. Mr. Murray is a Professional Engineer and holds Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Engineering from the University of Alberta and a Masters degree in Business Administration with specialization in finance and new ventures from the University of Calgary. Brad's family owns freehold mineral rights in the Ponoka area.
Jim Harriman, Executive VP Land
Mr. Harriman has had a long career as an entrepreneur, senior executive, director and financier for companies in which he has been a shareholder. His strengths in strategic planning, marketing, innovation, and general management have contributed to success in a number of industries. Mr. Harriman began his career as pipeline and oilfield construction supervisor. He then became involved as a partner in Palliser Development Ltd, formed to develop and market commercial and residential property and residential land. During this same period Mr. Harriman was also Alberta Regional Manager for Cargill Grain Company Ltd. Both of these interests melded and resulted in the formation of Palliser Grain Company Ltd. ("Palliser"), a direct marketing innovative grain trading and grain processing company. Jim and his family own freehold mineral rights in the Vulcan area of southern Alberta.
CONSULTING
Jim Crowley, Geology
Dr. Crowley holds a PhD from the University of British Columbia and an M.A. and B.A. from the University of Iowa in geology, and has been involved in coal-related technology for almost forty years. He participated in the development of the first coal bed methane wells in the southern United States in the mid-1970s. Following a 10-year academic career as an assistant and later associate professor at the University of Calgary, Dr. Crowley returned to industry. For the past fifteen years, he has consulted to Canadian energy companies with a focus on shallow gas and coal bed methane.
DIRECTORS
Jim Harriman, Chairman of the Board
Brad Murray, Director
Mark Topolnyski, Managing Director
Mr. Topolnyski has over 30 years of multi-discipline experience in the oil and gas industry including general management, operations management, project management, procurement, logistics, administration, finance and entrepreneurship. He is currently Project and Planning manager for Nexen Inc. working on a multi-million dollar shale gas project in north-east British Columbia. Mark was also a founding partner of the Polar Drilling Group which successfully built and operated two double rigs. Mr. Topolnyski has a Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Finance and Economics from the University of Alberta.
Mike Shaikh, Director
Mike is the President of M.H. Shaikh Professional Corporation (Chartered Accountants). He is or has been a member of various public companies. He is a member of the Calgary Police Commission and a past member of the Alberta Securities Commission. He is also an
Honourary Investment Counselor for Pakistan.
Leigh Clarke, Director
Since his call to the bar in 1992, Leigh has been extensively involved in advising companies within Alberta's energy industries. Mr. Clarke currently serves as Senior Vice President of Law and Public Affairs for AltaLink, a Calgary-based company responsible for approximately 60 percent of Alberta's electrical transmission requirements. Mr. Clarke is responsible for leading AltaLink's legal initiatives and legal risk management efforts, the establishment and maintenance of its governance structures, and its internal and external communications requirements. Born and raised in Calgary, Mr. Clarke is a member of the Law Society of Alberta, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Association of General Counsel of Alberta.
Bernard Goltz, Director
Mr. Goltz’s family owns petroleum and natural gas rights in the Redwater, Holden and Joarcam areas of the province. He was employed with the Alberta Department of Energy for 36 years and held several managerial positions during that time including leasing of the Alberta Crown’s petroleum and natural gas rights and Department representative on the Crown Mineral Exploration Disposition Review Committee. Since leaving the Department, he has provided his experience and services to freehold mineral owners who require assistance in understanding clauses in their leases (e.g. offset wells, royalty calculations, etc.) and when necessary negotiating new leases with the oil and gas industry.
SHAREHOLDERS
Just Freehold has over 300 shareholders, of which approximately two-thirds are freehold mineral owners.
