Overview
General Manager/ Plant Head – Oil & Gas (Upstream) Jobs in Dammam, Eastern, Saudi Arabia at Coefficient Alliances & Ventures (Coefftalent)
Title: General Manager/ Plant Head – Oil & Gas (Upstream)
Company: Coefficient Alliances & Ventures (Coefftalent)
Location: Dammam, Eastern, Saudi Arabia
Engagement details:
- Job Title: General Manager/ Plant Head
- Client: Prominent Regional Corporate Firm – Oil & Gas
- Employment type: Permanent role
- Location: Onsite in Dammam, KSA
- Experience level: 18+ years
About the Joint Venture:
The JV is being established to build a state-of-the-art Advanced Precision Machining and Remanufacturing Facility, aligned with Saudi Vision 2030 and IKTVA (In-Kingdom Total Value Add) mandates.
The initial and primary industry focus of the JV is the Oil & Gas – Upstream segment, including drilling, wellhead, pressure control, and production equipment components. The facility is being designed to meet API-driven and upstream qualification standards required by major EPCs and energy operators in the Kingdom.
Role Overview:
Our client is seeking a seasoned and entrepreneurial General Manager / Plant Head to lead this
greenfield Advanced Precision Machining & Remanufacturing Facility. This role carries full P&L responsibility and end-to-end accountability for building, operationalizing, qualifying, and scaling the JV facility.
The role requires deep familiarity with Oil & Gas upstream customer qualification cycles, API standards, and high-integrity machining and remanufacturing of critical components.
Key Responsibilities:
1. Business & P&L Leadership
- Own full Profit & Loss responsibility for the JV operations.
- Deliver revenue, EBITDA, cash flow, and ROCE targets as approved by the Steering Committee.
- Build and execute annual operating plans and 3-year scale-up roadmap.
- Drive cost optimization, productivity improvements, and margin expansion.
- Manage capital deployment, capacity ramp-up, and machine utilization.
2. Greenfield Execution & Scale-Up
- Lead plant commissioning, layout finalization, equipment installation, and operational readiness.
- Oversee ramp-up from initial machine set to full planned capacity.
- Establish structured SOPs, ERP systems, and performance dashboards.
- Build scalable processes to support phased expansion into upstream remanufacturing services.
3. Operational & Technical Leadership
- Lead advanced CNC machining operations (milling, turning, grinding) for high-integrity upstream components.
- Oversee machining and remanufacturing of upstream oilfield components such as drilling tools, wellhead equipment, pressure control components, valves, and rotating/static equipment.
- Oversee qualification and validation of special processes including heat treatment, surface treatments & coatings (HVOF, laser cladding), NDT, welding, and API-compliant processes.
- Drive Lean Manufacturing, TPM, Six Sigma, and operational excellence initiatives.
- Ensure optimal asset utilization and high OEE.
4. Quality, Certification & Compliance
- Lead facility certification journey including API Q1, API Monograms, and ISO certifications.
- Strong working knowledge of API Q1 systems and upstream compliance frameworks is mandatory.
- Ensure compliance with EPC and upstream customer audit requirements.
- Establish zero-defect culture with strong First Pass Yield discipline.
- Ensure strict compliance with HSE and Saudi regulatory requirements.
5. Customer & Market Interface
- Act as primary operational interface for upstream customers and EPCs.
- Lead technical discussions, audits, and qualification visits.
- Build credibility within the upstream ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.
- Support business development in collaboration with JV leadership.
6. Talent & Localization Leadership
- Recruit and build a high-performance leadership team.
- Develop a skilled workforce aligned with Saudi localization requirements and IKTVA mandates.
- Drive training, capability building, and succession planning.
- Create a performance-driven, accountable culture.
Qualifications & Experience:
- Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical / Manufacturing Engineering (Master’s preferred).
- 18+ years of experience in precision machining and special processes.
- Mandatory: Minimum 10+ years of direct experience in Oil & Gas Upstream manufacturing or remanufacturing environments.
- Strong exposure to EPC-driven qualification cycles and upstream service companies.
- Minimum 7+ years in senior leadership role with P&L responsibility.
- Hands-on involvement in API-certified facilities is essential.
- Proven experience in greenfield plant setup or large-scale expansion.
- Experience working in GCC upstream ecosystem preferred.
Key Competencies:
- Strong understanding of upstream customer qualification and audit-heavy environments.
- Entrepreneurial mindset with structured execution capability.
- Strong commercial and financial orientation.
- Deep technical credibility in high-integrity machining environments.
- Ability to build systems from scratch.
- High accountability and ownership mentality.
- Strong stakeholder management skills (Board / JV / Customers).
- Commitment to safety, quality, and long-term value creation.