Saudi Aramco to Open 3 US Research Centers

Artist rendition of the Houston Research Center located in the city?s ?Energy Corridor? with over 45,000 square feet of office and state-of-the-art laboratory space. The new facility will focus on upstream research to advance the discovery and recovery of oil and gas. Saudi Aramco is currently hiring experts from around the world to work in the center expected to be operational later this year.

Saudi Aramco has announced the opening of three research centers in the United States with Houston named one of the cities to house a new facility focused on upstream research. Houston joins two other U.S.- based centers in Cambridge, Mass. and Detroit designed to extend the energy giant's global research and development (R&D) network. 

The Houston Research Center, expected to be operational later this year, will consist of teams spanning upstream subsurface domains. Saudi Aramco is currently hiring experts from around the world to work in this center that has state-of-the-art laboratory to develop technology to advance the discovery and recovery of oil and gas. 

In opening these research centers, Saudi Aramco looks to further strengthen its collaboration with others and to provide solutions to challenges in the upstream and downstream sectors of the industry. These specialized centers of excellence will address far-reaching challenges.

The three centers join a worldwide network of research centers established by Saudi Aramco to leverage scientific expertise and further complement the cutting-edge work by the company's Exploration and Petroleum Engineering Center's Advanced Research Center (EXPEC ARC) and its Research and Development Center (R&DC) both located in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. These world renowned R&D centers are devoted to original research from the upstream exploration and production sector to downstream refining. The work supports Saudi Aramco's strategic aims to increase oil and gas reserves, improve recovery rates and develop improved refining processes.   

The Houston Research Center, located in the city's "Energy Corridor" west of downtown along Interstate 10, was strategically located in a major hub for oil and gas research and development with close proximity to many energy-industry related companies. Furthermore, it is near chemical and oil field fluids manufacturers as well as service companies, R&D labs and top petroleum engineering universities.  

The Cambridge Research Center, in a stand-alone center adjacent to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), was strategically located to support computational reservoir modeling, nanotechnology and advanced gas membrane systems.

The Detroit Research Center, sited in southeastern Michigan in the city of Novi, was strategically located to take advantage of collaboration with leading research organizations for joint research on fuel efficiency and engine development.  

Saudi Aramco R&D representatives say much of their research happens in partnerships with premier universities and technology providers as well as independent researchers and developers around the world.   

The three U.S.-based centers will employ experienced professionals with advanced degrees in petroleum engineering, geology, chemistry, materials science or other related fields. The company also has research centers in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia; Delft, The Netherlands; Paris; and Beijing; and a technology center in Aberdeen.   

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ConocoPhillips Donates to University of Houston's Energy Research Park

Continuing its commitment to education at the University of Houston, ConocoPhillips is donating $1 million to UH's growing Energy Research Park (ERP) and $125,000 to various engineering, science and business programs.

The $1 million gift will support the ConocoPhillips Petroleum Engineering Building, which serves an expanding number of undergraduate and graduate students. ConocoPhillips has now given a total of $3 million to this facility, with previous gifts of $1 million in 2012 and also in 2011.

UH Energy is a key strategic focus for faculty research and teaching, and the ERP is at the heart of these efforts. The vision for the ERP is to build a premier research and education facility for students and faculty, as well as establish a unique environment for the best minds to forge new business approaches to the way energy is created, delivered and used.

An important element of this vision is the ConocoPhillips Petroleum Engineering Building, which in 2011 became the new home for UH's popular petroleum engineering program. The building houses three teaching laboratories, three classrooms, a computer lab, faculty offices and a student lounge.

"ConocoPhillips is pleased to continue our support of the University of Houston's Energy Research Park and the petroleum engineering program," said Jeff Sheets, ConocoPhillips' Chief Financial Officer and the company's executive sponsor for the University of Houston. "The University of Houston plays a vital role in educating the next generation of top-quality and diverse engineering graduates for the energy industry."

In addition to its long-standing master's degree option, UH's petroleum engineering program launched a bachelor's degree option in fall 2009. The undergraduate program, which is designed to fill the gaps in the industry's aging workforce and equip graduates with the skills needed in the evolving energy world, has grown from about 20 students in the inaugural semester to more than 400 students this spring.

"We are grateful to ConocoPhillips for making this important investment in the university," said Dow Chair Professor Ramanan Krishnamoorti, special assistant to the president/chancellor for UH Energy. "This is a tremendous commitment to a number of great energy initiatives we have here at UH. We are truly fortunate to have ConocoPhillips' continued support in helping us achieve our goal of becoming 'the energy university.'"

ConocoPhillips also is giving $125,000 to UH to help fund a number of programs in the Cullen College of Engineering, the C.T. Bauer College of Business and the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (NSM).

"We appreciate the unwavering commitment that ConocoPhillips has for our programs, particularly our petroleum engineering program and the ever-expanding Energy Research Park," said Joseph W. Tedesco, dean of the UH Cullen College of Engineering. "The unique partnership we forged in 2011 continues to be a win-win. It's a win for the industry because we are helping to provide the workforce they need to compete in 21st century technologies. And it's a win for the university because it further validates our mission."

Cullen programs receiving money include the Program for Mastery in Engineering Studies, the Society of Women Engineers, the National Society of Black Engineers and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers. At Bauer, the Emerging Leaders Academic Success Program, Beta Alpha Psi and the Diversity Case Competition are among the groups receiving some of the funds. The NSM program beneficiaries are the Scholar Enrichment Program, the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (ABSA) and the Society of Exploration Geophysicists.

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Saudis, Iran Vie for Key OPEC Research Job

Saudi Arabia and Iran have both put forward candidates to replace the departed head of research at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Middle Eastern oil officials said Friday, as competition for influence in the group heats up between the two arch-rivals.

The two Middle East nations already have nominees to replace Abdalla Salem el-Badri as secretary general--the most important position at OPEC.

But the Middle East officials say a permanent replacement is being sought after the departure of Hasan Qabazard, the former director of OPEC research division. He has been replaced on a temporary basis by Oswaldo Tapia, the latest OPEC monthly report shows.

The position is important because it entails overseeing the monthly report, which spells out the group's views on oil markets and supply requirements.

Muhammad Ali Khatibi, Iran's OPEC governor, said "we have a candidate for the head of research and the secretary general," adding it had proposed one different person for each job. A Gulf delegate said Saudi Arabia has also put forward a "technocrat" for the job.

The competition for the job comes as OPEC members are facing a raft of new challenges, from mounting budget pressures fuelling higher oil-price needs and competition from non-conventional oil production in the U.S.

Copyright (c) 2013 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

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Saudis, Iran Vie for Key OPEC Research Job

Saudi Arabia and Iran have both put forward candidates to replace the departed head of research at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Middle Eastern oil officials said Friday, as competition for influence in the group heats up between the two arch-rivals.

The two Middle East nations already have nominees to replace Abdalla Salem el-Badri as secretary general--the most important position at OPEC.

But the Middle East officials say a permanent replacement is being sought after the departure of Hasan Qabazard, the former director of OPEC research division. He has been replaced on a temporary basis by Oswaldo Tapia, the latest OPEC monthly report shows.

The position is important because it entails overseeing the monthly report, which spells out the group's views on oil markets and supply requirements.

Muhammad Ali Khatibi, Iran's OPEC governor, said "we have a candidate for the head of research and the secretary general," adding it had proposed one different person for each job. A Gulf delegate said Saudi Arabia has also put forward a "technocrat" for the job.

The competition for the job comes as OPEC members are facing a raft of new challenges, from mounting budget pressures fuelling higher oil-price needs and competition from non-conventional oil production in the U.S.

Copyright (c) 2013 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

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API Launches Oil Spill Research Website

American Petroleum Institute (API) Director of Marine and Security Issues Robin Rorick announced Tuesday the launch of www.ioscproceedings.com, a new website that hosts research papers presented every three years at the International Oil Spill Conference (IOSC). The site will enable greater sharing of best practices and latest technologies among industry, government and other stakeholders, as well as promote safe operations around the world.

"Safety is the oil and gas industry’s number one priority," said Rorick."The IOSC Proceedings represent more than 40 years of research into oil spill prevention, response and restoration. Putting this treasure trove of information online makes the latest information, data and research available in the widest possible manner."

First held in 1969, the IOSC provides an open public forum for professionals from the international community, the private sector, government, and non-governmental organizations to highlight and discuss innovations and best practices across the spectrum of prevention, preparedness, response and restoration. Peer-reviewed papers presented at each conference are then published in the IOSC Proceedings. Online for the first time ever, this new database provides free access to more than 3,000 articles containing information and perspectives available nowhere else.

Permanent sponsors of the triennial IOSC include API, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.

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