Business Development Team

Kirk Blackim is a Business Development and Financial professional with over 30 years of experience in natural gas gathering and processing, FERC regulated transportation, crude oil and natural gas liquid transportation and water gathering.  Kirk’s experience covers most basins in the U.S. including Marcellus, Utica, Northern Rockies, Mid-continent and Delaware basins with transactions ranging from small independent producers to large international companies and projects ranging from small optimization opportunities to full scale integrated projects as large as $1.0B and acquisitions as large as $2.5B. Kirk has developed strong working relationships based on integrity and a customer focused approach to developing business.

Prior to Vaquero, Kirk served as the Director of Business Development – Gathering & Processing for Crestwood Midstream Partners LP.  Kirk joined Crestwood in 2014 after spending three years developing gathering and processing projects in the Marcellus Shale play in the Northeastern US with The Williams Companies, including the Ohio Valley Midstream assets that anchor Williams’ processing business in the region.  While at Williams, Kirk held titles including Manager of Commercial Development for OVM and Senior Originator in Williams Corporate Strategic Development Group.  Prior to Williams, Kirk spent his career in business development roles with Clear Creek Energy Services, Koch Industries, TCW Asset Management Company and Kansas Pipeline Operating Company. Kirk’s experience includes accounting, finance, operations and governmental regulation of midstream and gas transmission systems.  He is a graduate of Washburn University of Topeka, Kansas with a B.B.A degree in Accounting and minor in Finance and he successfully completed the C.P.A. exam in 1983.

Brett Taylor joined Vaquero Midstream in 2015 as Director of Gas Supply, with over 10 years of experience in the oil and gas industry working for both producer and midstream service providers. He most recently served as Gas Supply Manager for Regency Energy Partners where he was responsible for securing new gas supply sources in the Permian Basin. Prior to Regency, Brett held multiple positions with Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. As a member of the Midstream and Marketing groups at Encana, he led business development and origination opportunities, as well as managed transportation assets in the Texas/Louisiana Gulf Coast region. Brett has developed, negotiated and closed gathering, processing, and compression projects in his roles with producers and midstream companies alike.

Prior to joining Encana, Brett was a Management Associate at Citigroup Inc., and a Senior Project Development Engineer for TAC – Americas where he focused on energy cost reduction solutions and operational efficiencies.

Brett received an MBA from Texas A&M University, Mays Schools of Business, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Baylor University.

Christopher M. Seiders (Chris) began his career in the oil and gas industry as a chemical engineer, but has spent the past 15 years as a business development professional. Immediately prior to joining Vaquero, Chris spent four years with Regency Energy Partners, LP, where he was instrumental in commercially developing and closing more than $500 million in grassroots midstream infrastructure projects as well as providing analysis of strategic acquisitions.

Chris has a wide range of experience including the design of gathering systems and new plant facilities, estimation of capital costs, economic model creation, proposal development and final contract negotiation. He has a history of developing mutually beneficial relationships with producers resulting in large acreage dedications and volume commitments.

Chris graduated with a Bachelors of Science degree in chemical engineering from the University of Oklahoma. He continued his education at the University of Texas at Arlington where he earned his Masters of Science in quantitative finance in 2008.