About

Scott Mitchell is the co-founder and CEO of Deep Blue, the largest water management company in the Midland Basin.  He founded Deep Blue with a vision to improve and advance water management practices in the energy sector and beyond.  

Scott brings more than 20 years of experience in the energy industry.  Prior to co-founding Deep Blue, he established and served as CEO of Waterfield Midstream, another water platform in the Midland Basin.  He began his energy career at Anadarko Petroleum, holding various geology, engineering, commercial, and management positions during his 13-year tenure there.  While at Anadarko, he commercialized their Permian water business for affiliate Western Gas Partners.  

Scott holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in geology from Brigham Young University. 

Ben Smiley is the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Deep Blue Water, bringing over a decade of experience in the oil and gas industry. In his role as COO, Ben oversees operations, strategic growth, and execution, helping to drive the company’s mission and performance.

He began his career at Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, where he held a variety of engineering positions. He later joined Waterfield Midstream as Vice President of Engineering and was subsequently promoted to Senior Vice President of Operations, where he led key initiatives in infrastructure development and operational excellence.

Ben earned a Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering from the Colorado School of Mines.

Robert Norton is the Chief Commercial Officer at Deep Blue Water, where he leads all commercial and M&A activities, with a focus on acquiring and expanding water infrastructure in the Midland Basin. He played a key role in Deep Blue’s joint venture with Diamondback Energy and the acquisition of Lagoon Water Midstream, significantly expanding the company’s footprint.

Prior to Deep Blue, Robert led Five Point Energy’s water strategy in Wyoming through his firm, Rio Blanco, and held commercial roles at Cureton Midstream and DCP Midstream. 

Robert holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Southern Methodist University.

Kirk Manes is Chief Financial Officer of Deep Blue, the Midland Basin’s largest independent water infrastructure platform. He leads the company’s finance organization, including capital markets, financial planning, accounting, and reporting, and he helps guide Deep Blue’s growth through organic expansion and acquisitions.

Kirk joined Deep Blue from Five Point Infrastructure, the Houston-based private equity firm that co-founded Deep Blue with Diamondback Energy and specializes in midstream water infrastructure. As a Partner at Five Point, he invested in and helped build water and midstream businesses, giving him an owner’s perspective on Deep Blue’s strategy and capital allocation. Earlier, he was an Associate of the Energy Investment Banking group at Wells Fargo Securities, where he advised midstream companies on M&A and capital markets transactions.

Kirk holds a B.B.A. in Finance from the University of Texas at Austin.

Isaac Griesbaum has served as the General Counsel for Deep Blue since inception.

Prior to joining Deep Blue, Isaac was in private practice, most recently as a partner at Winston & Strawn LLP, and before that at Paul Hastings LLP and Jones Day, where he represented the largest produced water companies, as well as upstream and midstream oil and gas, oilfield services, and carbon capture and sequestration companies on mergers and acquisitions, asset acquisitions and divestitures, joint ventures, corporate and partnership governance matters, and commercial matters.

Isaac holds a BBA from the University of Texas McCombs School of Business and a JD from the University of Texas Law School.