Woodside Energy Names Liz Westcott as CEO, Managing Director

By David Winning

SYDNEY--Woodside Energy named Liz Westcott as its chief executive and managing director, leaning on her expertise running its Australian operations as it prepares for a significant expansion of oil and natural-gas production in North America.

Westcott has been acting chief executive since December when Meg O'Neill quit as CEO to join oil major BP as its new leader.

Woodside is investing heavily in new projects that it hopes will support production growth into the future. The first of these developments--the Beaumont New Ammonia project in Texas--achieved maiden output in December. Woodside also aims to ship the first cargo of LNG from its Scarborough project in Australia in the fourth quarter of this year.

Its medium-term project pipeline includes the Louisiana LNG project in the U.S., which was 22% complete at the end of December. Woodside aims to produce liquefied natural gas from the project for the first time in 2029.

Woodside's increased bets on natural gas reflect a conviction that the world will continue to shift away from using coal to generate power, while seeking a fuel that can act as a bridge toward higher output of renewable energy such as solar power.

"Liz's extensive industry experience and strategic vision will be invaluable in leading Woodside at this significant moment in its history, as we position the company to meet growing global energy demand and deliver long-term shareholder value," Chair Richard Goyder said.

Woodside said it had considered external candidates for the role, alongside executives within its ranks deserving of a promotion.

Westcott led Woodside's Australian operations since joining the Perth-based company in the middle of 2023. She was previously chief operating officer at utility EnergyAustralia, and spent 25 years at ExxonMobil in Australia, the U.K. and Italy.

Write to David Winning at david.winning@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 17, 2026 18:40 ET (22:40 GMT)