Deep Down Appoint New VPs

Deep Down, Inc., a specialist in subsea oil and gas production control equipment and services, has appointed veteran oil and gas industry executives Richard Blackett as Vice President of Sales and Business Development, and Trevor Ashurst as Vice President of Finance, both new roles at the Company.

Mr. Blackett, 48, most recently served as Global Vice President for Offshore Production in his thirteen years at National Oilwell Varco (NOV) based in Houston, Texas. Mr. Blackett led NOV's effort to secure offshore production projects targeting primarily Subsea Umbilicals, Risers and Flowlines (SURF) and topside production solutions. Additionally, he established strategic alliance agreements to expand NOV's participation in conceptual studies, pre-FEED and FEED studies, mooring and subsea tieback systems.

Prior to NOV, Mr. Blackett spent nine years with various oilfield service companies, where he held progressive roles as project engineer designing and building equipment and project manager supervising projects for both onshore and offshore applications. Mr. Blackett earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at Penn State University and served in the United States Navy from 1989 to 1997.

Mr. Ashurst, 37, most recently served as both the Manager of Global Financial Planning and Analysis and Manager of Investor Relations at Dril-Quip, Inc. Prior to holding these dual roles, he was instrumental in Dril-Quip's M&A activities as part of their Corporate Development group, ultimately serving as the Finance Manager for a newly acquired subsidiary.

Prior to Dril-Quip, Mr. Ashurst spent three years working in institutional sales and equity research with a primary focus on upstream energy companies at Miller Tabak & Co in Houston, Texas and four years working in KPMG's external audit practice in Dallas, Texas. Mr. Ashurst holds a BBA in Accounting, a Master of Science in Accounting, and an MBA from the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University.

Charles Njuguna, Deep Down CEO, stated, "We are delighted to welcome these two gentlemen as they both bring a wide range of relevant experience and skills to our organization. Richard and Trevor are not only great complements to our existing personnel, but they also fill strategic needs to help tap our creativity and drive the next stage of our growth as a premier offshore solutions provider. We are confident this puts Deep Down in an even stronger position to play a key role in a newly evolved ecosystem of operators, OEM's and strategic partners."