Gorriceta Africa Cauton & Saavedra

Senior Counsel

Jose Ma. Emmanuel “Kiril” Caral brings over three decades of legal and executive leadership, with deep expertise in the energy and petroleum sectors. He has a proven track record in regulatory compliance, stakeholder engagement, dispute resolution, and managing multi-billion-dollar investments. Kiril is known for his strategic leadership in high-stakes environments, including corporate transitions, international arbitration, and public-private partnerships.

He previously served as Head of Legal and Chief Administrative Officer of Prime Energy Resources Development B.V. (formerly Shell Philippines Exploration B.V.), where he oversaw Legal, HR, HSSE, IM&T, Corporate Affairs, and Government Relations. Kiril was also Managing Director (Chief Executive Officer) and Head of Legal at SPEX. He was Head of Legal of the Shell companies in the Philippines (SciP) supporting Upstream, Downstream, Shared Services, and New Energies. He served as Senior Legal Counsel based in Singapore for Shell Exploration and Production Asia Pacific, supporting business development and operations in Indonesia, Australia, Brunei, Malaysia, and India.

Currently, Kiril is Senior Adviser to Prime Energy and Chairman and; President of the Malampaya Foundation Inc., where he advocates for sustainability and social investment. 

English, Filipino

Association of International Energy Negotiators (AIEN)

Inter-Pacific Bar Association (IPBA)

Kiril earned his Master of Laws with Distinction from the University of Edinburgh as a British Chevening Scholar. He holds a Juris Doctor and an A.B. in Economics from Ateneo de Manila University, where he was the College Student Council President and received the Departmental Award for Economics.