Black Bay Partners Announces Promotions and Additions to the Firm’s Leadership Team

NEW ORLEANS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Black Bay Partners, LLC (“Black Bay” or the “Firm”), a leading private equity firm focused on growth investments in the lower-middle-market energy and related industrial and specialty chemicals sectors, is pleased to announce that N. John Lancaster, Jr. has joined the Firm as a Partner and that Matt Schovee and Sam Scofield have been promoted to Partner and Principal, respectively.

“We are pleased to announce Matt’s promotion to Partner and Sam’s promotion to Principal. Matt has been with Black Bay since its inception in 2016 and Sam joined as an Associate in 2019. They have both been instrumental in Black Bay’s growth as a firm, helping to manage the portfolio and drive new investment opportunities,” said Michael LeBourgeois, Managing Partner of Black Bay.

“We are also thrilled to welcome John Lancaster to the firm to broaden our leadership team and establish our presence in New York,” said LeBourgeois. “John’s investment expertise, extensive network, excellent reputation, and experience with our Firm will be invaluable as we continue to execute our strategy. John has been an investor with and advisor to Black Bay since its inception, including multiple co-investments, and shares our vision and values for partnering with talented teams to build leading companies – all in pursuit of favorable and consistent returns for our investors.”

John joins Black Bay from Oyster Creek, LLC, a private investment firm he founded in 2020 that manages growth investments across the energy industry and related industrials sectors, including multiple co-investments with Black Bay. Prior to founding Oyster Creek, he spent 20 years with Riverstone Holdings, LLC from its inception in 2000. During his extensive private equity investing career, John has led and executed dozens of private equity transactions across the energy value chain, from upstream to downstream in North America and abroad, with a particular emphasis on energy-related manufactured equipment and products and services.

“I am excited to join Black Bay at this dynamic time for both the Firm and the broader energy and specialty chemical markets,” added Mr. Lancaster. “I have known Michael since very early in our careers and I have worked with the broader Black Bay team since the Firm’s inception. Their investment strategy addresses the need and opportunity to support growth-oriented entrepreneurs with businesses that are providing economically superior, more reliable, and sustainable products and services to the energy and industrial complex. I look forward to working with a team where a true `partnership culture' is paramount, as I believe that is essential for enduring investment success.”

About Black Bay:

Black Bay is a private equity firm that invests equity capital in partnership with entrepreneurial management teams who are building high-growth companies in the energy and chemical industries. Black Bay’s strategy is to target companies with innovative products and services that help their clients to reduce costs, improve operations, and achieve sustainability initiatives. The firm’s objective is to drive success through a relentless commitment to establishing and cultivating a true partnership with portfolio company management teams, and a belief that deeply rooted partnerships generate outsized returns by fostering collaboration and creativity. Black Bay is currently investing out of its second fund and has over $500 million of assets under management. For more information, please visit www.blackbaypartners.com.