Prairie Operating Co. names new CEO and CFO amid leadership changes

Prairie Operating Co. (Nasdaq: PROP), a Houston-based oil and gas company operating in the Denver-Julesburg Basin, has promoted Gregory S. Patton to Chief Executive Officer and appointed him to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. The company also named Michael J. Shelly as Chief Financial Officer, according to a press release.

Patton, 40, previously served as the company's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since April 2025. Before joining Prairie in March 2024, he held the CFO role at Trigger Energy, LLC and served as Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and Finance at Great Western Petroleum, LLC prior to its sale to PDC Energy in May 2022. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in accounting from the University of Denver.

Shelly joins Prairie from Citigroup, where he most recently served as a Managing Director in the Natural Resources Group, heading the investment bank's Denver and Calgary offices. He joined Citigroup in 2005 and has over 20 years of experience advising on mergers, acquisitions, and capital markets transactions. He holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

In connection with the leadership changes, Rich Frommer will step down from his role as Interim President and Chief Executive Officer and return to serving as a Director on the board.

Board Chairman Erik Thoresen said Patton's "deep understanding of our asset base, and strategic vision make him well-suited to lead Prairie through its next phase of growth," and noted that Shelly's background in capital markets and M&A "will further strengthen Prairie's financial leadership."

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