Pioneer Drillings chairman passes unexpectedly on Saturday
Pioneer Drilling Co.’s chairman of the board Michael E. Little died unexpectedly over the weekend, the company said Tuesday.
The cause of his death has not yet been released. Little died on Saturday, Jan. 13.
Board member C. Robert Bunch has been appointed the new chairman of San Antonio-based Pioneer Drilling. Bunch has been on the board since May 2004.
Little joined Pioneer as chairman and CEO in 1998 when the company only had six rigs.
In December 2003, he accepted a position with Wedge Group Inc. as its president and CEO. Wedge was Pioneer’s largest shareholder at the time. Little became the non-executive chairman of Pioneer.
“Mike Little was an extraordinary leader with a keen understanding of the drilling industry,” Pioneer’s President and CEO Wm. Stacy Locke says. “He was a dedicated leader during Pioneer Drilling’s critical early growth years and we will deeply miss him. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to Mike’s family, including his wife Melanie and three children.”
Pioneer provides land contract drilling services to independent and major oil and gas operators in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas and the Rocky Mountain region. It has a fleet of 63 drilling rigs.
Published January 16, 2007 by the San Antonio Business Journal
