Lee Keeling and Associates, Inc. has been providing personal and confidential advice to all segments of the petroleum industry, domestic and foreign, since 1957. Consulting on all aspects of geology and engineering, LKA is capable of providing studies on specific prospects or entire programs. A dedicated staff of professional petroleum engineers and geologists, experts with a wide range of experience, provides services to investors, financial institutions, integrated oil companies, independent operators, lawyers, accountants and governmental agencies.
Our appraisal reports are recognized by major financial institutions and used as a basis for oil company mergers, purchases, sales and financing of oil and gas properties, and for registration purposes with regulatory authorities throughout the world. Our clients range from individual investors to large international corporations. Over its 60+ year history LKA has continually demonstrated the ability to apply the proper methodology to diverse situations.
Our goal is to provide experienced technical assistance in a state-of-the-art format from which our clients can make sound dependable business decisions.
Meet the LKA Team
John Wheeler
Geologist/President
Mr. John Wheeler is President of Lee Keeling & Associates (LKA), an international petroleum E&P consulting and reserve evaluation company founded in 1957. As a Certified Petroleum Geologist, Mr. Wheeler has 35+ years’ experience in geological and engineering investigations in oil and gas industry. He has conducted geologic and reservoir studies of both conventional and unconventional reservoirs in more than 30 countries and in every major U.S. petroleum province, highlighted with recently developed shale plays i.e. Permian, Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Marcellus, Bakken, Woodford and Niobrara. He has extensive experience in reserve evaluation for public and private oil companies, and financial institutes. He also performs evaluation of oilfield properties for acquisition and divestiture as well as being a technical advisor to foreign and domestic companies looking to invest in U.S. oil and gas business. His other studies include pipeline feasibility assessment, gas storage evaluation and waterflood projects analysis. He also provides expert witness reports and testimony for legal cases. Mr. Wheeler earned his B.Sc. degree from University of Oklahoma and M.Sc. from University of Tulsa, both in Geology. He is a member of AAPG, SPE, SPEE, OIPA, TGS and KGS, and can be reached at johnw@lkaengineers.com.
J. Chris Jacobsen
Reservoir Engineer/Vice President
Mr. J. Chris Jacobsen is Vice-President, managing engineer and is a Registered Professional Engineer in Oklahoma and Texas at Lee Keeling & Associates (LKA). Prior to joining LKA, Mr. Jacobsen served as CEO/COO of Oak Ridge Natural Resources and Premier Natural Resources, which acquired >$1.5B of assets in Texas, Louisiana, Wyoming, Mississippi, with net production of >200 MMcfepd for each company. Mr. Jacobsen served as Vice President of U.S. Operations for Vintage Petroleum Inc. (NYSE:VPI) from 2002 to 2006 and as Sr. Vice President of KCS/Medallion Energy (NYSE:KCS) from 1994-2002. Mr. Jacobsen served as Sr. Vice President of Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc. from 1982 to 1994, after beginning his career with Exxon as a reservoir engineer. Mr. Jacobsen holds a B.Sc. degree in Chemical Engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. He can be reached via email at chrisj@lkaengineers.com.
Richard Xu, PhD
Geoscience Associate
Dr. Richard Xu is geology/geophysics associate at Lee Keeling & Associates. He has 30 years’ experience in the upstream exploration and development in oil and gas industry, domestically and internationally. Dr. Xu obtained his MSc and PhD degree in Applied Geophysics from University of Calgary. He worked as geophysical/geological advisor for Occidental Petroleum (OXY) and then California Resources Corp (CRC). Dr. Xu discovered an 18 mmbo (OOIP) oil field and a few smaller pools by utilizing seismic data and integrating with well logs, regional geology and reservoir engineering data. He is also involved in reserves assessment, economic evaluation, and making Life of Field (LOF) plans within varies asset teams. At OXY, he was a seismic data processing geophysicist with CGG at its Calgary center. Dr. Xu started his career as a field wireline logging engineer for China Offshore Oil Logging Corporation (COOLC) in early 90s, worked in offshore South China Sea and onshore Tarim desert area in western China. Dr. Xu is a member of SEG and AAPG.
Stuart Cox
Reservoir Engineer Associate
Mr. Stuart Cox is currently the founder and President of Cox Petroleum Consultants LLC. Prior to founding CPC Stuart was VP Reservoir Engineering at PetroEdge Energy III & IV LLC, where he provided engineering support for two Eagle Ford Shale developments. Before joining PetroEdge, Mr. Cox was the Chief Reservoir Engineer for Unconventional Resource Developments at Marathon Oil Company. He has 37 years of industry experience. Over the past ten years his primary focus has been evaluation and production optimization of unconventional oil and gas reservoirs. Mr. Cox is a Society of Petroleum Engineers Distinguished Lecturer 2009-2010. In 2012 he received the Gulf Coast Region Formation Evaluation Award. He graduated from the University of Tulsa with a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering in 1984 and is a registered professional engineer in Alaska, Oklahoma and Texas.
Keli Klassen
Senior Engineering & Geology Technician
Mrs. Keli Klassen has nearly 20 years’ experience as an Engineering and Geological Technician in the oil and gas industry. She has extensive experience in reserve evaluation and reporting, asset development, and evaluation of properties for acquisition and divestiture. Mrs. Klassen earned her B.Sc. degree from Northeastern State University. She has volunteered at Tulsa Habitat for Humanity, Tulsa Food Bank, local schools and youth sports.
History
The history of Lee Keeling and Associates, Inc. (LKA) dates back to 1957 when Lee A. Keeling founded the company in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where its headquarters remain. Shortly thereafter, in 1959, Kenneth Renberg joined the firm as Vice President. Originally, the firm provided specific and exclusive engineering service to the oil and gas exploration and production industry. Through the years the firm has grown and expanded its capabilities over a broad spectrum of expertise. Today, based on 60+ years of experience, LKA consults on all aspects of petroleum geology and engineering for both domestic and international projects.
With the retirement of Mr. Keeling and Mr. Renberg, having handed down their years of vision and leadership, the firm was reorganized with Gordon L. Romine as President, John R. Wheeler as Vice President and Phillip W. Grice as Secretary-Treasurer. In 2018, Mr. Romine retired and Mr. Wheeler became the firm’s President.
During LKA’s long history of providing consulting services to the oil and gas industry, the firm has had offices in Los Angeles, California and Houston, Texas. The Los Angeles offices provided consulting services for the huge Elk Hills Naval Petroleum Reserve. As business emphasis changed, all of our operations have been centralized in Tulsa, the historic “Oil Capital of the World”.
LKA assignments have involved productive areas in all geologic basins of the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Indonesia, and many Latin American countries, including assignments from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers to prepare appraisals of mineral rights that were acquired for the Arkansas River Navigation System.
LKA’s appraisal reports are recognized and respected by major financial institutions and used as a basis for oil company mergers, purchases, sales, financing of projects, and for registration purposes with financial and regulatory authorities throughout the world. The client list ranges from major oil and gas companies to individual investors.
As technology continues to advance in the industry, LKA is dedicated to using the latest professional evaluation procedures and engineering practices. This allows us to offer wide-ranging specialized services. Perhaps most important of all, LKA is committed to providing the same prompt, efficient and professional treatment that has become a trademark of the organization to all job assignments, regardless of size or value.
The talented professional and technical personnel of LKA encompass all technical disciplines, as well as changing regulations and technology advances, required to deliver complete and thorough reports and advice to our clients.
LKA maintains associations with other experienced independent consultants with varying expertise not normally required in the firm’s regular assignments. When required, it will retain the services of these highly competent experts to satisfy a client’s request.