New Permian Basin International Oil Show President Larry Richards of Odessa says the proudest thing about his office is its working man’s tradition.
Referring to the list of PBIOS leaders going back 82 years to 1940, Richards said it is a distinguished roster and one that’s linked to the oilfield’s hardest work.
“I’m incredibly excited,” he said Wednesday. “I have been on the board for decades and it is a real honor to be following in these big footsteps. One of the common traits of a lot of the people who have held this post is that it is a working man’s show.
“They made their marks as innovators and entrepreneurs, but they also rolled up their sleeves and went to work every day, a lot of it out in the field. They built up teams of people and companies and through that made real impacts in our industry and communities.”
Richards’ father James P. was a petroleum engineer who worked for the Getty Oil Co., where he became responsible for Getty’s operations over the western half of the United States. The family lived in Andrews when Richards was small and he graduated from high school in Houston before taking a degree in business management at Texas A&M University.
He began his career with the Continental EMSCO drilling rig manufacturing and well servicing company, becoming vice president of sales and marketing, and he was vice president of Key Energy Services and CEO of the Hy-Bon engineering and industrial manufacturing company. He was CEO and chair of Van Zandt Controls before retiring.
Richards said leading the biennial exhibition from Oct. 17-19, 2023, at the Ector County Coliseum “is a little intimidating.
“It’s humbling because we have opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship that are unique anywhere in the U.S.,” he said. “Combined with the work ethic of the West Texas people, we can get some amazing things done.”
Richards said the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston was once the nation’s top oil show, but Odessa’s has come to rival it with the completions, automations, algorithms and other new things going on here.
“There’s so much happening,” he said. “We’re completing holes a mile deep and we turn and go two miles horizontally, then inject several football fields full of sand that makes permeable formations where the formations had been depleted.”
Richards and his wife Sondra have two sons. His mother’s name was Mary.
PBIOS Executive Director Tony Fry said attendance was down at the October 2021 show with 16,000-18,000, but he expects at least 20,000 the next time. “The last one was down a bit, coming off COVID,” he said.
“But it was still a very good show. The people who attended were here for a reason. They were looking for products and services and were serious about what they were doing. The companies wouldn’t put their blessing on having their employees go.”
Fry said his search of the records had indicated that the exhibition “didn’t actually have a so-called ‘president’ when it began in 1940 and continued after World War II.”
He has explained that the show is held every other year to ensure that compelling new technology will have been developed.
Tommy Pipes of Odessa was president of the 2021 show, following Stephen Castle of Midland in ’18, Monnie Sparkman in ’16, Larry Wadzeck in ’14, Don Gregory in ’12, Doug Duff in ’10, Steve L. Holifield of Midland in ’08, Joe Young in ’06, Ray Peterson of Midland in ’04, Kirk Edwards in ’02, L.D. “Dave” Robbins of Midland in 2000.
Also, John Dinger in 1998, W.R. “Bro” Hill in ’96, Don Narrell of Midland in ’94, Robert K. “Bob” Beggs of Midland in ’92, Ed Barham in ’90, Clarence Cardwell of Midland in ’88, T.L. “Woody” Gregory in ’86, Frank Ratcliff of Midland in ’84, E.G. “Eddie” Durrett in ’82, Joe Womack of Midland in ’80, Larry Byrd of Midland in ’78.
Also, Bill Hall in ’76, Frank Lovering in ’74, Vernon Blain in ’72, Pat Fletcher of Midland in ’70, J.A. McVean in ’68, Fred Courtney of Andrews in ’66, John Ed Cooper in ’64, O.D. Albright in ’62, J.C. Hostetler of Monahans in ’60, Arno Anders in ’58, Roy Carter of Kermit in ’56, W.D. Lane in ’54 and Lloyd R. French in ’52 and ’50.
