John Defterios is veteran, award winning journalist and economic analyst with more than 35 years of experience at CNN, Reuters and PBS Television in the United States.

John is the former CNN Business' Emerging Markets Editor and Anchor. He is a Strategic Senior Advisor APCO Worldwide, board member in media and the youth development arenas, Professor of Business at NYU-Abu Dhabi and a World Economic Forum Senior Energy Fellow.

Defterios is a recipient of the Alfred Dupont Award at Columbia University, The Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Foundation award for the Advancement of Energy Journalism and the International Association of Energy Economics Award for excellence in energy journalism.

He is a sought-after fixture at high-level global events as both a speaker and moderator. He chairs sessions at the World Economic Forum, the OPEC Seminar, IMF Global Roundtable, St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, ADIPEC, Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum, U.A.E. World Government Summit, Global Manufacturing & Industrialization Summit, The Milken Institute, IRENA General Assembly, Euromoney Roundtables, U.S.-Saudi Arabia Investment Summit, Islamic Development Bank Annual Meeting, Global Women’s Forum, UNWTO Global Tourism Council, World Energy Council and Saudi Arabia's Future Investment Initiative and many others.

Rovshan Chingiz oglu Najaf was born on April 9, 1982 in Baku, Azerbaijan. In 1997, he went to the Faculty of International Economic Relations of the Azerbaijan State University of Economics. He graduated with honours from the bachelor’s program in 2001 and Master’s program in 2003. In 2007-2008 he successfully completed the Master’s program in Economic Policy Management / International Energy Management and Policy at Columbia University, USA within the framework of the SOCAR scholarship program.

He started his career in 2001 as a laboratory assistant at the Department of International Economic Relations and Marketing of the Azerbaijan State University of Economics. In 2003-2007, he worked as a consultant and senior adviser in the Investment Policy Unit of the Investment and International Economic Cooperation Department of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In 2008-2009, he worked as the Head of the Investment Contracts Unit of the Investment Department of SOCAR. In 2009-2010, he was the Head of the Foreign Economic Relations Department and Assistant Minister of Economic Development at the Ministry of Economic Development. In 2010-2018, he worked as the Deputy Executive Director and Executive Director of “Azerbaijan Investment Company” OJSC.

He was appointed as the Head of the Innovative Development and e-Government Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan by the Order issued by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan on May 11, 2018, as the Chairman of the Financial Monitoring Service of the Republic of Azerbaijan by the Order issued on August 28, 2019, as the Deputy Minister of Economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan by the Order issued on February 11, 2020, as the First Deputy Minister of Economy by the Order issued on December 24, 2021. He was appointed as the First Vice President and Acting President of the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan by the Order issued by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan on February 10, 2022. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed an order on 21.07.22 on appointment of Rovshan Chingiz oglu Najaf as president of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR).

He holds a PhD in Economics, is the 3rd degree State Counsellor. Married, has two children.

Gio has been with bp for 24 years, holding multiple leadership roles across the bp portfolio. He has a wealth of experience in operations and leadership across bp’s upstream businesses. In his previous role as senior vice president of bp Solutions, Gio led a global organization partnering with bp's upstream and refining businesses to drive differential performance. 
Gio serves as chairman of the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers, where he actively fosters collaboration across the oil and gas sector.
Gio holds a PhD in thermodynamics and a master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Padua, Italy, and is a fellow of the Institute of Chemical Engineering and a chartered scientist.

Martina Opizzi is a senior executive at TotalEnergies with more than 20 years of international experience in the energy sector.

Industrial engineer as educational background, Martina started her career at Eni in 2008 after four years of strategic consulting. During her 17 years at ENI she held a series of positions of increasing responsibility across marketing, strategy, negotiations and business development. She started in the downstream gas and power business, contributing to the development of retail activities in newly liberalized markets, and subsequently joined the Office of the CEO, where she supported top management on group-wide strategic projects.

She later moved to the upstream sector, taking on commercial and negotiation roles and holding international assignments in Norway, Kazakhstan and Egypt. In 2020, she was appointed Head of Investor Relations at Eni, a position she held until 2022. She then became Head of Business Development, Negotiations and M&A at Plenitude, Eni’s renewable energy and energy transition subsidiary, before being appointed Head of the North Africa and Eastern Mediterranean region at Eni in 2023.

In February 2026, Martina Opizzi joined TotalEnergies, where she was appointed Senior Vice President for E&P Europe

Steve Gassen is SLB’s executive vice president of Geographies, a role he assumed in May 2025. He is responsible for the company’s global sales and commercial, integrated solutions, and geography-based business operations, ensuring alignment between regional execution and enterprise strategy. 

Steve joined SLB in 2017 as vice president of Services for the Cameron Group following the company’s acquisition of Cameron, where he held various roles in materials management, strategic marketing, supply chain, and operations. At SLB, he has since held several senior leadership positions, including president of Production Systems, senior vice president of Carbon Solutions, senior vice president of Marketing, and president of Valves and Process Systems.

He holds a degree in industrial engineering from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School.

Alexios is a Partner in Strategy & Transactions practice of Deloitte & Touche (M.E.), focusing on Energy, Resources, & Industrials.

He specialises in M&A strategy, commercial advisory and business optimisation, in particular organic and inorganic growth strategy, commercial optimization, performance improvement and analytics-led transformations.

Alexios brings local, regional and global expertise, having worked with clients in the Middle East and across the globe.

John Defterios is veteran, award winning journalist and economic analyst with more than 35 years of experience at CNN, Reuters and PBS Television in the United States.

John is the former CNN Business' Emerging Markets Editor and Anchor. He is a Strategic Senior Advisor APCO Worldwide, board member in media and the youth development arenas, Professor of Business at NYU-Abu Dhabi and a World Economic Forum Senior Energy Fellow.

Defterios is a recipient of the Alfred Dupont Award at Columbia University, The Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Foundation award for the Advancement of Energy Journalism and the International Association of Energy Economics Award for excellence in energy journalism.

He is a sought-after fixture at high-level global events as both a speaker and moderator. He chairs sessions at the World Economic Forum, the OPEC Seminar, IMF Global Roundtable, St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, ADIPEC, Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum, U.A.E. World Government Summit, Global Manufacturing & Industrialization Summit, The Milken Institute, IRENA General Assembly, Euromoney Roundtables, U.S.-Saudi Arabia Investment Summit, Islamic Development Bank Annual Meeting, Global Women’s Forum, UNWTO Global Tourism Council, World Energy Council and Saudi Arabia's Future Investment Initiative and many others.

By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev dated July 28, 2023, Arzu Javadova was appointed as the vice president of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic.

In 1984, Arzu entered the Department of Geology and Exploration of the Azerbaijan Oil and Chemical Institute, which she graduated with honors in 1989. Javadova holds a PhD in geology/mineralogy. Javadova is author of more than 50 scientific publications and holds 2 patents from the Moscow State Institute of Crystallography on the subject of Hydrothermal methods of Crystal Growth..

Javadova’s career started at the Azerbaijan Oil and Chemical Institute in 1985 as a part-time laboratory assistant in the "General, Historical Geology and Hydrogeology" department of the Institute and followed in 1987-1988 in the "Geophysical prospecting methods" department, and then in 1989-1991 as an engineer at the "Oil and Gas Exploration" department. In 1990, Javadova started her postgraduate studies at the "Oil and Gas Exploration" department, which she graduated in 1994. In the same period until 1996, Javadova also worked as a full-time teacher at the "Oil and Gas Exploration" faculty of the same university. In 1996-1997, Javadova worked as an engineer at the "Azerineftinformatika" computing center of SOCAR, in 1997 as a geochemist-group lead at the central laboratory of the Offshore Oil and Gas Production Union. She then led Petroleum Geochemistry Group of the Offshore Oil and Gas Field Development Control Expedition.

In 1997-1999, Javadova was appointed as the chief geologist at the US "Frontera Resources" Oil Company, and in 1999-2003, she joined "Salyan Oil" LLC as the Senior/Development geologist, and in 2003-2007 "Delta Hess ACG" LLC as the senior geoscientist. Between 2007-2022, Javadova worked in the exploration department of "BP Exploration" (Caspian Sea Ltd.) as a senior geologist, group leader, geological exploration manager, hydrocarbon systems analyst.

Between 2022-2023, Javadova joined SOCAR as the chief geologist.

Dan has 25 years of industry experience, most of it in subsurface, focusing on unlocking difficult-to-extract resources. His experience includes assignments in production operations, wells, and subsurface, including offshore and other field sites in countries such as Canada, Brazil, the US, the UK, Norway, Indonesia, Australia, and India. His most recent role was vice president subsurface for the Asia-Pacific and India regions.
Dan holds a degree in petroleum engineering and is a professional engineer licensed in Alberta, Canada.

Murad Guliyev serves as Head of Technical Functions at GL Group, bringing more than 22 years of international experience in drilling and wells operations across Azerbaijan, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Middle East.

Throughout his career, Murad has held technical and operational leadership roles with major international energy companies, including bp, Eni, and Saudi Aramco. His experience covers some of the industry’s most significant assets and projects, including ACG, Shah Deniz, Thunder Horse, Atlantis, Ghawar, and Shaybah.

Murad’s expertise spans the full lifecycle of well delivery, from concept development and engineering through execution and performance optimization, with a strong focus on safety, operational efficiency, and technical excellence. He has contributed to the successful delivery of complex drilling and wells operations across diverse and challenging operating environments.

In his current role, Murad plays a key part in supporting GL Group’s technical and operational objectives, while contributing to the continuous improvement of drilling and wells performance across the company.

Ulf Heitmüller was born in Nienburg, Germany in 1965. After achieving a diploma in electrical engineering at Leibniz University Hanover, he initially worked between 1994 and 2004 in various technical and management positions at BEB Erdgas und Erdöl GmbH. 

He then moved to Shell Energy Deutschland GmbH, where he was Head of Operations until 2005. After a three-year overseas posting as Project Manager for Shell Energy Europe in London, he took over the role of Managing Director at Shell Energy Deutschland GmbH in 2007. From 2009 he was also responsible for gas sales in north-western Europe at Shell Energy Europe. 

From 2010 to 2012, Ulf Heitmüller was CEO of EnBW Gas Midstream GmbH. Between 2012 and 2016 he held the position of Executive Director Trading & Supply at EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG. In both positions he helped shape the strategic development of the gas business at EnBW. 

In 2016, Ulf Heitmüller was appointed Chairman of the Executive Board of VNG AG, where the group-wide transformation of the company has been driven under his leadership.  

Ulf Heitmüller was made Honorary Consul by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry in 2017. As part of this honorary role, he is responsible as Norway’s representative for the federal states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Brandenburg. 

Vitaliy is the Managing Partner of KPMG in Azerbaijan and Deal Advisory Partner for KPMG in the Caucasus and Central Asia (KPMG CCA). He also serves as Head of Infrastructure for the Caucasus and Central Asia region, leading advisory services for large-scale infrastructure, energy, and transport projects.
With more than 15 years of experience, Vitaliy has extensive expertise in Energy & Natural Resources, Power & Utilities and Infrastructure. He has advised governments, investors, and international organizations on major projects across the region, supporting the development of modern energy markets and critical infrastructure.
His experience includes renewable energy portfolio transactions, development of renewable energy auction mechanisms, attracting investors for thermal power plants, and designing tariff frameworks for infrastructure sectors. He has led numerous landmark projects and strategic advisory engagements within the energy and utilities sector, contributing to investment attraction and energy transition initiatives in emerging markets.
Vitaliy is a frequent speaker and moderator at international energy and investment forums, where he shares insights on renewable energy development, energy sector challenges, and investment opportunities in the Caucasus and Central Asia.
Outside of work, Vitaliy enjoys playing guitar, mountain climbing, and completing endurance challenges such as the IRONMAN triathlon.

Aslan has over 9 years of advisory and audit experience in Azerbaijan and Türkiye. Aslan started his career in Türkiye, where he was dealing with complex economic models and specific controls. Aslan focused on the assessment of significant estimates and judgments, their proper and relevant implications and benchmark analysis.

Aslan specializes in IFRS, US GAAP, UK GAAP, Profit Sharing Agreements (PSA) and financial statements audits for large Azerbaijani and international companies. He has experience with companies in the Energy and Resources and Manufacturing sectors. Aslan has extensive experience in SOX 404 internal control testing, statutory reporting (Profit Tax Returns, Cost Recovery Reports), asset and goodwill impairment testing and reserves estimation testing.

At Risk Advisory department Aslan is also focused on non-financial assurance and sustainability services. Aslan is actively engaged in the development of sustainability concept in Azerbaijan in cooperation with business-community, government authorities and NGOs. In 2019, Aslan was appointed deputy chair of CSR Committee of The American Chamber of Commerce in Azerbaijan. 

Aslan graduated from Bilkent University and is a member of the of Chamber of Auditors of the Azerbaijan Republic, 2018.