Our Team - Petrotek Corporation

Our Team

Our Professionals have degrees and directly applicable experience in: Petroleum Engineering, Geological Engineering, Geophysical Engineering, Geology, Hydrogeology, Environmental Science and Geography.

Highly Qualified Team Members Have Extensive Experience in Subsurface Fluid Flow Related to Industrial, Mining and Hydrocarbon Recovery Sectors.

Dedicated Professionals with Relevant Project Experience Related to Subsurface Injection of Waste Water, Carbon Dioxide (CO2) and Fluids Related to In-situ Mining Operations.

Ken Cooper, M.S., P.E.

Ken Cooper is one of the managing principals of Petrotek and serves as the Director of Engineering. He holds both B.S. and M.S. degrees in Petroleum Engineering from the Montana College of Mineral Science and Technology (now the University of Montana School of Mines & Engineering) and is a registered professional engineer in Colorado and numerous other states. Prior to helping found Petrotek in 1993, he gained engineering experience working in the petroleum industry and for petroleum/uranium/injection well consultancies.

Ken has more than 35 years of experience working with all classes of injection wells and specializes in investigating well feasibility, reservoir issues and testing, reservoir simulation, well compliance and permitting, along with optimizing injection well operation and maintenance.

Ken has published and given a variety of talks and short-courses regarding subsurface injection, pressure transient well testing, and the simulation of subsurface fluid flow over the years, provides expert witness testimony regarding well permitting, subsurface resources and injection wells, is a board member of the GWREF and UITC, and has been an active member of both the GWPC (formerly the UIPC) and the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) since the 1980s.

Ken enjoys engineering consulting as it gives him an opportunity to work with people from all over the country and help solve a variety of problems. Outside of work, Ken likes spending time with his wife, hiking, four-wheeling, an occasional good craft beer, and traveling. He hopes one day to have visited all seven continents

Hal Demuth, M.S.

Hal is one of the managing principals of Petrotek and is a Senior Engineer and Hydrogeologist. He has more than 35 years of applied industry experience, and holds a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering and an M.S. degree in Hydrogeology. He is passionate about the application of creative technical and regulatory solutions to assist clients with complex projects. He is a Technical Team Leader for produced water and wastewater management via Class I, Class II and Class V injection wells for oil and gas production across the United States. His drilling and completions experience includes vertical, directional and horizontal wells in the Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, and the continental U.S.

Hal leads the technical team for ISR uranium Class III permitting and operations support for projects in Wyoming, Texas, Nebraska and South Dakota. His ISR uranium experience includes the majority of projects in the US as well as selected projects overseas. His team has also completed groundwater characterization and assessment projects for conventional hard rock mines (silver, lead/zinc, copper) and rare earth element mining projects in the U.S.

Hal has provided expert witness testimony for oil and gas operators and ISR uranium operations related to technical, regulatory and contractual issues in Federal and State Courts. He holds degrees in Petroleum Engineering (B.S.) and Hydrogeology (M.S.).

Hal is the proud husband of Monette and father of 11 children. He and his family reside in the foothills west of Denver. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, hunting and skiing.

Wes Janes, B.S., P.G.

Wes is one of the managing principals of Petrotek and serves as the Field Operations. He holds a B.S. degree in Geology from the University of South Alabama. Wes has more than 16 years of experience with wellsite field work and the application of geology to permitting for all classes of well projects. He also has experience supervising well drilling, completion, testing and stimulation work throughout the country and conducting aquifer testing for site characterization of ISR uranium operations in Texas and Wyoming. Wes has been actively involved in the permitting, design, installation, reservoir fluid sampling, testing, and remediation of disposal wells across the country. Wes is an active member of the Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists, the Society of Petroleum Engineers, the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, and is a Licensed Professional Geologist in Wyoming, Indiana, Kansas, Nebraska, Texas and Utah. He and his family reside in the foothills west of Denver. In his spare time, he enjoys hunting, skiing, hiking and camping with his wife and three daughters.

Ken Schlieper, B.S.

Ken Schlieper holds a B.S. degree in Environmental Studies from Slippery Rock University. Ken has extensive multi-disciplinary skills that he sues to assist Petrotek clients that he has gained through more than 31 years of field and project management experience in hydrogeologic characterization at numerous CERCLA, RCRA, and other regulated sites throughout the U.S. He has performed numerous aquifer tests for uranium ISR operations throughout the country. More recently, he has been a lead technical contributor to numerous Class I hazardous and nonhazardous injection well projects across the country related to permitting, supervision of workovers, stimulations, drilling operations, and mechanical integrity testing. In his spare time, Ken enjoys photography and spending time with his family on the ski slopes or in the backcountry.

Aaron Payne, M.S., P.G.

Aaron Payne is a Senior Hydrogeologist at Petrotek. He holds a B.A. degree in Geology from Bowdoin College and an M.S. degree in Geology from the University of Wyoming and is a registered professional geologist in Wyoming, Texas, Nebraska, Kansas, and Indiana. Prior to joining Petrotek in 2008, he gained geology experience working in the petroleum industry for a major wireline service company and for an environmental consulting firm. Aaron has experience working with all classes of injection wells and specializes in characterizing formations and resources, investigating feasibility, permitting wells, and conducting reservoir/groundwater simulation studies to service the injection well, uranium mining and petroleum industries. He uses numerical groundwater models in support of hydrologic characterization and assessment, particularly related to Class III ISR uranium permitting and operations support. Aaron has extensive experience related to the feasibility, permitting, and technical support to regulatory agencies related to Class I UIC disposal wells in various states around the country. He has also provided geologic support related to oil and gas permitting and development in Wyoming, as well as providing expert witness testimony related to these operations. Aaron is a member of the Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists, National Groundwater Association and the Wyoming Geological Association. In his spare time, he enjoys skiing, cycling, and camping with his wife and two sons.

Adam Simonsen, M.S.

Adam has B.S. and M.S. degrees in geology from WCA and the Colorado School of Mines and is an active member of AAPG and RMAG. He is skilled with the use of a variety of software to conduct well log analysis to determine reservoir properties using petrophysics and to characterize reservoirs by generating correlations, maps and stratigraphic frameworks of geologic systems. At Petrotek, Adam is applying his skills to characterize reservoirs for the permitting of Class I, Class II and Class VI injection wells.

Anthony Pennino, B.S.

Anthony has almost twenty years of experience providing regulatory and permitting support for major projects associated with natural resources development. Since obtaining a degree in chemistry he has worked for several large multinational producers and provided consulting services to a variety of clients. His experience includes work with planning and acquiring local, state and federal permits required for a variety of project types and through a wide variety of regulatory agencies. At Petrotek Anthony is supporting CCUS permitting and Class I injection well installation for a variety of clients in Alaska and the lower 48.

Brian Ault, B.S.

Brian Ault is the Senior Technical and Project Manager for Petrotek. He holds a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering from Marietta College in Ohio and has more than 35 years of professional experience. Brian began his career in the oilfield service industry spending five years working for The Western Company of North America. He then spent five years working for Meridian Oil/Burlington Resources in the San Juan Basin, New Mexico/Southern Colorado. He moved to Denver in 1997 and after a one-year engagement with a consulting firm, he started working for Ultra Petroleum. After more than eight years with Ultra; working in permitting, reservoir evaluation, drilling, completions, production and regulatory reporting; helping to guide them to over seven billion dollars of market capitalization, he took early retirement. Retirement did not take and his interest in the industry brought him to Petrotek.

In has various assignments with various oil and gas production companies Brian gained extensive experience, primarily in the areas of well completions and production. Brian’s expertise relates to his vast experience across many disciplines within the oil and gas arena, but primarily in his ability to deliver projects safely, on schedule, on budget, and aligned with business goals.

During his time away from work, Brian enjoys spending time with his five kids and crawling over the rocks around Moab, Utah in his Jeep.

Charles Wilson, B.S.

Chuck has forty years of petroleum engineering experience that varies from drilling and field operations to the management of technical teams for upstream E&P operations. Since earning a petroleum engineering degree from the University of Wyoming Chuck has drilled more than 2,000 wells in many different basins in the U.S. and internationally. At Petrotek, Chuck provides field and engineering support for Class I industrial, Class VI CCUS, and specialized test well design, well planning, and supervision of field drilling operations.

Connie Walker, M.S.

Connie Walker is a senior geologist with a B.S. degree in geology and an M.S. degree in geology from the Colorado School of Mines. She has over 35 years of experience in the fields of geology, regulatory analysis and compliance, and waste analysis, as well as hazardous, non-hazardous, mixed and radioactive waste characterization, management and disposal. Mrs. Walker served as program director and manager for contracts supporting the US EPA Headquarters Office of Radiation and Indoor Air, and has managed State and regional RCRA, CERCLA, and NEPA contracts. She has performed and managed every aspect of RCRA support from RFAs, RFIs, CMSs, groundwater monitoring/corrective action development to permitting, including preparation of hazardous and non-hazardous treatment, storage, and disposal permit applications, closure, and post closure plans.

She has prepared and reviewed Land Ban Exemption Petition requests for both the UIC and RCRA programs. She has performed the spectrum of permit support activities ranging from permit modification request development and review, permit writing/preparation, permit modification request reviews, expert witness testimony, and permit compliance maintenance.

Most recently, Mrs. Walker prepared permit applications and Land Ban Petitions for commercial clients throughout the country, with emphasis on site geologic feasibility, hydrologic conditions, well design, construction, testing, monitoring, operation, and waste analysis. Mrs. Walker was involved with corrective action rulemaking for EPA Office of Solid Waste and rulemaking for Waste Isolation Pilot Plant waste characterization activities on behalf of the EPA Office of Radiation and Indoor Air. She provides regulatory analysis and training with an emphasis on RCRA and UIC regulations on both a state and federal level.

David Huffington, M.S., G.I.T.

David is a Project Geologist at Petrotek where he applies his industry experience along with knowledge gained by earning both a B.S. in Geophysical Engineering and a M.S. degree in Petroleum Reservoir Systems from the Colorado School of Mines.

David has experience in wireline logging operations, log interpretation and correlation, petrophysical data analysis, seismicity, and general geology. While at Petrotek, David has worked on new permit applications, permit renewals, supervised annual testing, and summarized annual testing activities per regulatory requirements. David has experience in multiple basins including the DJ Basin, Powder River Basin, Williston Basin, and the Michigan Basin. David is a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Rocky Mountain Association of Geologists, and the Denver Well Logging Society.

Errol Lawrence, M.S., P.G., C.G.W.P.

Errol Lawrence is a senior hydrogeologist with Petrotek. He has a B.S. in Geology and an M.S. in Engineering Geology with nearly 40 years of experience in the fields of hydrogeology, geology, environmental science, and oil and gas exploration and development. He has extensive experience in the application of analytical and numerical groundwater models in support of hydrologic characterization and assessment for industrial, military, mining and oil and gas related projects. He has performed effectiveness evaluations of remedial alternatives and engineered remedial systems and assessed no migration demonstrations (EPA Land Ban Petitions) with both saturated and unsaturated flow models. Mr. Lawrence has worked on numerous mining permits for uranium in-situ recovery (ISR) facilities, including preparation of permit applications, and permit modifications. He has worked extensively on assessment of hydrologic impacts and remedial actions at former uranium mill sites under UMTRA Title I and Title II regulations. He was lead author in the development of Alternate Concentration Limits for some of those former mill sites. He has supported the US Environmental Protection Agency on multiple assignments, including review of fate and transport models and assessment of chemical transport parameters applied to the Waste Isolation Pilot Project (WIPP), development of groundwater flow models to assess RCRA facilities, review of Remedial Feasibility Investigation (RFI) Reports, and preparation of RFI/Corrective Measures Studies (CMS) completeness reviews. Mr. Lawrence has developed numerous models supporting permitting of deep well disposal of hazardous wastes and been lead author on geohydrology components of associated State Permit applications and EPA Land Ban Petitions. He has represented clients in public and regulatory meetings and hearings and has provided expert witness testimony. As part of this work, he has reviewed and/or prepared sampling and analysis plans, hydrogeologic reports, waste characterization reports, engineering design documents, and developed waste management practices with respect to disposal of liquid waste.

Errol has a strong understanding of both geologic characterization and how it impacts fluid flow, and is well practiced in the development, application and review of groundwater flow and transport models. He enjoys utilizing his hydrogeologic and numerical modeling expertise for the purposes of characterizing site hydrogeologic conditions, delineating nature and extent and identification of contaminant pathways, evaluating remedial alternatives, assessing effectiveness of remedial designs, and assisting with the design and restoration of projects impacted by site activities.

James Klutho, B.S., P.E.

Jim Klutho is Senior Reservoir Engineer at Petrotek. He holds a B.S. degree in Geological Engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla, Rolla and is a registered professional engineer in Colorado and other states. Jim has over 40 years of experience in reservoir engineering, production engineering, property acquisitions and operations. He has extensive technical and engineering knowledge combined with sophisticated computer-based skills. He is an expert on the Aries and Mosaic economic evaluation packages and has extensive experience with property evaluations for A&D. Jim is an integral part of the DSU reserve evaluation and EUR team at Petrotek, providing engineering analyses and testimony support documents for DSU permitting and testimony in Wyoming and Colorado. He has worked in development role and evaluated wells to be drilled, set up drilling programs, monitored well performance and performed lookbacks and was heavily involved in reserves process. He has also worked as lead evaluator of major acquisitions. Jim and his wife Carol live in Centennial, Colorado and are active in their HOA. Jim has interests in woodworking, computer programming and music, especially the guitar and piano.

Jeremiah Demuth, A.A., STS

Jeremiah is an engineering technician and holds an Associate degree from Red Rocks Community College. He has supervised permitting and drilling operations for multiple Class II wells in the DJ Basin. He also works with industrial, ISR, and oil and gas clients to provide site supervision for drilling and workover operations, as well as site safety and annual mechanical integrity testing.

Jeremiah also serves as the corporate health and safety officer for Petrotek and has specific training in the OHSA 1910 standards, Lockout/tagout, Oil and Gas Safety, OSHA 10- hour (general industry) and OSHA 30-hour (General industry), and maintains HAZWOPER (40 hour) certification. Jeremiah lives with his wife and their children in Colorado. In his spare time, he enjoys writing, hunting, and martial arts.

Lee Shafer, B.S., P.E.

Lee Shafer is a licensed professional engineer with over 40 years of process engineering experience in the petroleum and uranium industries. Lee’s experience includes uranium solution mining, coal bed methane water treatment, fracturing fluid optimization, and oil field water recycling for fracturing. The oil field water recycling includes projects in Wyoming, Utah, Oklahoma, and Texas; the work in Wyoming yielded 7 patents for his clients. Lee is also experienced in oil field production operations and well completions. Lee is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, and a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. Lee and his wife have been blessed to raise 6 children in Wyoming where they currently enjoy the company of 2 grandchildren.

Lewis Wandke, B.S., P.E

Lewis Wandke holds a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering from Montana Tech of the University of Montana. Professionally licensed in multiple states, he has more than 18 years of progressive experience in many aspects of asset development including reservoir evaluation, reservoir simulation, economics, drilling, and production operations. During his time at Petrotek, he has been involved with numerous injection projects, incorporating both well design and performance forecasting into successful projects for clients. Lewis is also closely engaged in engineering support related to permitting and development in a variety of basins. His passion lies in developing unique and creative methods to maximize results.

Nolan Beasley, B.S., E.I.T.

Nolan Beasley holds a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering from Colorado School of Mines. After graduating in 2016, Nolan worked as a hydraulic fracturing field engineer and consultant in several basins including the Permian, Williston, Powder River, and Uinta Basins. Throughout his time at Petrotek, Nolan’s primary focus has been on well design and reservoir testing and analysis. He is also closely engaged in engineering support related to Uranium ISR, reservoir management, and regulatory reporting projects. Nolan is an active member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and the American Association of Drilling Engineers. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling, playing golf, and being outdoors.

Tyler Burton, PhD

Dr. Burton has degrees in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Alaska, a graduate degree in economics from the University of Oxford, and graduate degrees in law from the Centre for Energy, Petroleum, and Mineral Law and Policy where he continued as a Research Fellow with concentration on corporate & regulatory climate law, policy, & economics. With Petrotek and for its clients, Tyler assists with Class VI permit applications, advises-on carbon capture and storage markets including market credits, offsets valuation, and financial incentives. He is an FSA credentialed Sustainability Accounting Professional at the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board.

Will Kinsey, B.S.

William Kinsey holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography, focused in applied geographic technology from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. During his time at Petrotek, he has assisted with the successful delivery of numerous injection well projects including feasibility studies, UIC Class I and Class II injection well permit applications, and permit renewal applications. William provides mapping support through his experience utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS), spatial analysis, and cartography. William is also a member of the American Association of Geographers and GIS Colorado. William and his wife enjoy hiking and traveling.