West Virginia could use a dose of entrepreneurial spirit, according to W. Henry Harmon, president and CEO of Charleston-based Triana Energy.

"Far too long, people in this area have talked themselves down or have been too eager to let other people lead them and not take responsibility for their own success," Harmon said.

"It (entrepreneurial spirit) means having the willpower to take the initiative and not be content to follow the trend. If you see an opportunity to invest in a way that can fulfill a need or a niche in the marketplace, it means being willing to take the risk and do that."

Harmon speaks from personal experience in terms of pursuing opportunities and doing so close to home.

"I think it's always important to invest where you live," the Dunbar native said. "People are going to realize that it makes good sense to invest where you have some visibility of that investment and you can feel good about what you're doing. This is where we (Triana officials) live, and this is where we want to invest."

Triana's Genesis

Harmon, who is a West Virginia Institute of Technology (now WVU-Tech) alumnus, was associated with Columbia Energy Group for 22 years. Starting in the finance department, he later would serve as Columbia Natural Resource's chief financial officer for 10 years and chief operating officer for five years.

A new career started after NiSource purchased Columbia in 2000. Shortly thereafter, Harmon served as president and CEO of Union Drilling Inc. of Pittsburgh and began creating Triana Energy.

An illustration of a Christopher Columbus sailing ship serves as the company's logo with an accompanying slogan of "Twenty-First Century Explorers."

Harmon explained that Rodrigo deTriana was the first of the Columbus crew to see America from his perch on the ship's crow's nest.

"We like to think of ourselves as explorers," he noted. "We were doing a lot of things in (oil and gas) exploration that no one else in the Appalachian Basin had been doing. We felt like we were some of the first people to see the potential for development in Appalachia."

With technical advances in directional drilling tools and hydraulic fracturing, Triana was among the leading developers who were gaining access to the region's organically rich shale deposits.

Within two years, NiSource put Columbia Natural Resources back on the market. Working with Morgan Stanley Capital Group, Triana purchased CNR through an auction process for $300 million. The new owners paid down debt and continued to grow the company for 26 months before selling the operation to Chesapeake Energy for $3.2 billion in November 2005.

Team Triana

Harmon is joined on the leadership team by six vice presidents with more than 150 years' combined experience in the oil and gas industry. The group is comprised of geophysicist Richard W. Beardsley (exploration), Shawn E. Casey (land and corporate acquisitions), petroleum engineer Ray Prudnick (operations), Certified Public Accountant Mark Chandler (chief financial officer), James H. Dissen (corporate development) and attorney James A. Jarrell (general counsel).

"We're the best overnight success story that took 30 years to happen," Harmon remarked with a grin. "Most of us have worked together for decades. We're very much oil and gas people at heart. Our guys have a very strong investment in the areas of drilling and exploration."

Harmon said it's still exciting for him to come to work each day to see what unfolds.

The Expansion

Harmon and his partners are using their financial resources and expertise to grow the company and develop other projects.

New endeavors such as Highlands Drilling and Appalachian Geophysical Services have oil and gas connections.

"We're natural gas production folks," said Harmon. "That's where we spend most of our time and our investments."

Charles Ryan Associates, one of the state's largest public relations firms, and Clark Truck Parts are among other acquisitions. The Triana family of companies has 480 employees, including 35 in the main office.

Harmon said Triana has the expertise to make informed decisions on investment proposals.

"Private equity is less risky, and we can have a greater control over the companies. You have much greater visibility. We can see the management teams whenever we need to."

The current ventures are solid and well positioned for the future, according to Harmon. "With private equity, we can be very selective," he noted. "We're looking to invest in people and management teams who understand the marketplace and can create a successful enterprise.

"We've looked at an increasing number of proposals, and we're looking at more proposals every week," he continued. "I would expect over the course of the next year, we're going to see a lot of things emanating from this group."

Triana is headquartered in an appropriately named building in downtown Charleston. The Equities House is a six-story, 60,000-square foot structure that's actually two 100-year-old buildings. The $1.2 million renovation includes a third-floor connector to a nearby parking garage.

UC Connection

Triana is a major supporter of the University of Charleston. The university's Graduate School of Business, for instance, occupies the second floor of The Equities House.

While he has worked on similar projects with other universities, Harmon said the partnership with UC has been unique.

"They have been more willing and better organized to consider cutting-edge opportunities than any higher education institution that I've run across," Harmon observed.

"We have an opportunity (through the graduate school) to help grow the next generation of business leaders. I think it's going to pay good dividends."