SPE-GCS Blog

April 1st, 2020

A VIRTUAL GCS

On behalf of the Gulf Coast Section volunteers and the Board of Directors, I want to first thank our local volunteers for all of their hard work over the year. We rely heavily on these volunteers to host our technical and networking events every month. With the new Covid-19 threat we all face, hosting events in person has been suspended for the near term future.

However, our volunteers still manage to drive our Gulf Coast Section forward in any way they possibly can. They always find a way.

With the new mandate to ‘Stay Home, Work Safe’ from the Harris County judge, the Gulf Coast Section has adjusted our education to a virtual platform. We are currently offering select webinars with the same high caliber of speakers that you expect to see from the Gulf Coast Section. …

March 1st, 2020

DATA ANALYTICS AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Growing up, I often jumped to an image of The Terminator or Battlestar Galactica whenever someone brought up the concept of "artificial intelligence." That's the image that comes to mind. It was always a good-versus-evil story about robots taking over our world. Now as an adult, I see the implementation of AI on so many practical levels that didn’t occur to me as a child. Artificial intelligence isn’t just a storyline anymore, it’s a reality.

What is the real version of artificial intelligence, and how is it currently being used in our lives today? What are the pathways going forward, and how is it being incorporated into workflows and procedures within our industry?

The third annual SPE-GCS Data Science Convention is right around the corner to help answer those questions! The convention, organized by the SPE-GCS …

February 1st, 2020

TEAM BUILDING

Many operations within our industry require a team effort in order for us to achieve our goals.

From drilling to production to refining, multiple people have a hand in getting a single barrel of oil out of the ground to its final refined product. Our ability to harness a talented team of professionals with various backgrounds and disciplines is constantly tested. Successful teams often portray a sense of loyalty and purpose that increases their productivity, work ethic and above all else, communication.

Communication is often cited as the number one cause for work, productivity and safety failures, while companies that focus on teamwork and collaboration within their groups are shown to have greater efficiency, creativity and overall employee satisfaction.

There is an evergreen phrase, "A chain is only as strong as the weakest link." We can easily adapt …

January 1st, 2020

Women in Energy

The SPE International Women in Energy (WIN) Committee was formed in 2016.

WIN was launched to promote gender diversity in the upstream oil and gas industry by attracting, retaining and engaging women in the STEM fields. SPEI’s vision is to empower women to realize their full potential in the industry through coaching, mentorship and access to the broader network of global WIN committees. The Gulf Coast Section (GCS) launched its own WIN committee in 2018 to further support the mission and vision of SPEI within our section. GCS hopes to carry this vision forward through all WIN events, especially at its second annual, highly anticipated WIN Congress event coming this January 31, 2020.

Our first GCS WIN event was held in early 2019. The SPE-GCS WIN 2019 Congress served as a single-day event focused on the central theme “Playing …

December 1st, 2019

Become an SPE Member

Having an SPE membership is invaluable, and the Gulf Coast Section takes pride in being one of the largest and most active SPE sections in the world. There are dozens of technical lunch-and-learns every month, as well as more in-depth conferences and symposiums covering a variety of disciplines. The cost to attend these events is low compared to peer events, but with an SPE membership, you also receive additional discounts. There are many networking opportunities with professionals at every level, and you can volunteer within SPE through community service outreach or by sharing your technical knowledge.

SPE members receive access to several resources (including discounts), such as the JPT magazine, OnePetro, which houses our SPE papers, PetroWiki and the SPE Bookstore. Being an SPE member allows you to stay up to date on industry trends, operational changes and …

November 1st, 2019

Distinguished Lecture Series

The Permian Basin Study Group will host the first Distinguished Lecture of the year on Tuesday, November 5, at Core Laboratories. The discussion topic, “Data Analytics with Human Intelligence: Outlier Analysis for Decoding Unconventional Plays,” will be presented by Distinguished Lecturer Ben Stephenson.

A link to the registration page can be found at spegcs.org/events/4450/.

Ben Stephenson is a geoscience advisor on the Completions Effectiveness Team for Unconventionals at Shell. He holds a BA in natural sciences from Cambridge University and a PhD from Oxford University on Himalayan tectonics and metamorphism. In his 20-year career with Shell, Stephenson has worked worldwide as a subject matter expert in fractured reservoirs on conventional carbonate and geothermal fields. He now specializes in the interaction between hydraulic stimulation and the subsurface for field development decisions. Stephenson has authored more than 30 external …

October 1st, 2019

Energy Dot

I would like to congratulate the Energy Dot committee on their tremendously successful Leadership Summit. Due to the adaptation and evolutions of technologies, there are many synergies between Silicon Valley, finance, academia and the oil and gas industry. The Energy Dot leadership team believed it would be a great initiative to have top executives from these sectors share their expertise and work together to help solve the world’s energy problems.

Energy Dot inspired us to embrace current cultural and technical advancement from other industries. It provided a showcase on how we can work together to build a solid foundation for a promising career in the energy sector. It isn’t just about oil and gas. It’s about meeting all of the energy demands of the future, from all sides of energy production. The leaders of the Energy Dot committee saw a …

September 1st, 2019

The Gulf Coast Section Scholarship Endowment Fund

The Scholarship Endowment Fund is very near and dear to my heart. Many years ago, I served as the Scholarship Chair for the SPE Gulf Coast Section, and was actively involved in interviewing high school seniors in the Greater Houston area for our Scholarship Program. Once the students were selected, I was responsible for maintaining and confirming the scholarship criteria with the students as they progressed through their college level curriculum. What I can tell you is this: these kids are amazing. They work so incredibly hard, and have more extra-curricular activities in a given week than most of us put together as adults. The best part of all of this is that they are right here in our own backyard.

In order for our GCS Scholarship recipients to keep their scholarship, they must …

August 1st, 2019

The SPE Gulf Coast Section extends a warm welcome to our new chair, Gabrielle Morrow.

We thought we’d introduce her by sharing part of our conversation.

Connect: Where are you originally from and how did you wind up in Houston, Texas?

Gabby: I was born in Lafayette, La. My father worked in the oil and gas industry, so my family moved around quite a bit when I was a child. I have lived in Houston on three occasions and have also had the pleasure of living in Scotland and Alaska. I attended Kansas State University on an athletic scholarship and graduated with a mechanical engineering degree. In my senior year, I accepted a job with ExxonMobil in Houston to be close to family.

Connect: What is so special about Houston and the Gulf Coast region?

Gabby: Houston is a city full …

July 1st, 2019

“…You have to experience the depths of the valley to appreciate the views from the peak.” – STEVE WAUGH

It’s been an absolute privilege and an honor to serve as the chairman of the world’s biggest SPE section. I would like to thank the board of directors, our advisors and every single volunteer in our section for having made my job easy and enjoyable. The relationships that I’ve built over the course of this journey will last forever!

In 2018-19 we saw the birth of many new initiatives and the growth of our existing programs and committees. Some notable achievements include:

• A New Website – We finally launched our new website with the help of our Communications chairperson, Karin Gonzalez, and our website administrator, Lindsey After several months of careful planning, this effort was executed very smoothly and efficiently. I’m hoping …