Walter F. Brandhuber, Founding Member and Principal
About Mr. Brandhuber
Walter F. Brandhuber is a Founding Member and Principal of Eastbridge Al Mal. Mr. Brandhuber is Chief Executive Officer of all Energy Related Entities and Head of all its investment activities.
He brings over 25 years of experience in the origination, development, negotiation and closing of M&A and joint venture transactions in the international oil and gas industry. He was named Managing Partner of the Millennium Private Equity Energy Fund in November 2006.
Recently Held Positions
From 2006 to 2008, Mr. Brandhuber was Head of the Oil and Gas Sector for Millennium Finance Corporation where he played a key role in closing over $400 million in energy-related transactions. He was named Fund Manager of the Millennium Global Energy Fund, successfully closing key investments in Kuwait Energy Company, Kuwait and International Innovative Technology, and NewCastle.
From 2005 to 2006, Mr. Brandhuber held the position of Senior Consultant at CRA International Ltd., an international advisory firm specializing in oil and gas transactions, assisting their oil company clients to develop and implement corporate and asset acquisition strategies.
Historical Positions
In 1999, Mr. Brandhuber retired from Union Texas Petroleum, and acted as an investor together with other financial investors, acquiring undeveloped oil fields, including the identification and negotiation of North African and Middle Eastern petroleum development licenses in four countries, representing over 500 million barrels of reserves.
From 1999 to 1989, Mr. Brandhuber was a key member of Union Texas Petroleum, rising to the rank of Vice President. He negotiated the third extension to the Badin petroleum licenses and the first government gas sales agreement in Pakistan, with an EBIT $45 million per year. He led the Union Texas negotiations for concessions in Spain, the North Sea, and Ireland, and spearheaded the company’s entry into Egypt, Tunisia and Italy. Upon returning to Houston, he was promoted to undertake global strategy and business development, including an analysis of regional gas markets worldwide. He negotiated strategic alliances with power plant operators, and established integrated electric power generation projects as a new business area, including in Pakistan and Indonesia, where Union Texas made investments of $450 million. With the opening of the CIS, Mr. Brandhuber was promoted to the Union Texas management team, responsible for developing business opportunities in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the C.I.S.
Mr. Brandhuber was responsible for negotiating the company’s strategic alliance with Oman Oil, securing a position in the Caspian Sea region of Central Asia. He negotiated the acquisition of a 75 per cent interest in four exploration blocks in Kazakhstan, including the much sought-after 13th and 14th blocks in the Caspian Sea, and an option to acquire the Government of Oman’s Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) pipeline rights.
He originated and implemented corporate strategy to acquire major oil-producing assets through the Government of Kazakhstan’s privatization program. He managed the due diligence and conducted negotiations for acquiring the largest Kazakhstan oil production company, Mangistaumunigaz (MMG). This strategy led to an agreement pursuant to which Union Texas had the right to acquire 95 per cent of MMG; with reserves of 1.25 billion barrels of oil, 85,000 barrels per day production, and 100,000-barrel CPC pipeline capacity.
In 1984, Mr. Brandhuber joined Tenneco Oil Co, where he established the Industry Group responsible for assessing the company’s US portfolio of assets and rewriting US royalty regulations. In that position, he expanded the company’s business into six new countries, negotiating petroleum concessions (licenses), ventures, and corporate acquisitions. He also developed the commercial and legal structure for the trans-Columbia pipeline.
Beginning his career in the oil and gas industry in 1982 with the Kaiser-Francis Oil and Gas Group, he led that company’s acquisition program, negotiating more than US$100 million in acquisitions, and achieving investment paybacks in less than a year. Mr. Brandhuber is a citizen of Germany. He holds a BA from Loyola University of Chicago, an MBA from the University of Notre Dame, and a JD from the University of Oklahoma.