Concurrent with the AAPG President, Dr. Paul Weimer’s Asia Tour in Kuala Lumpur, a workshop entitled ‘The Petroleum Industry in the Next Decade – An Overview to the Science, Technology and AAPG’ was organized by the AAPG University of Malaya Student Chapter on the 14th September 2011 at Hotel Singgahsana, Petaling Jaya. This workshop which was kindly sponsored by Talisman Energy Inc. and Murphy Oil Co., was free to all students and members of industry. The purpose of this workshop was to give students a strong sense of the spectacular technology which geoscientists work with, the future of the profession, and what can be expected in careers in the oil and gas industries.

The event received great response with an overwhelming number of 200 participants from students of University of Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Petronas, including lecturers and some members of industry. The workshop started at 10.00 am and ended at 3.30 pm, with a short lunch break at 1.00 pm.

Dr. Paul Weimer is the current AAPG President and also the Professor, Bruce D. Benson Endowed Chair, Director of Energy and Minerals Applied Research Centre and a consulting geologist at the University of Colorado. He divided the workshop into three themes each. In the first exercise, it is themed as ‘Rejuvenating Old Fields’. Dr. Weimer talked about conventional and unconventional reservoirs with example of 3D seismic interpretation from a meteorite impact field in North Dakota. The next exercise with the theme ‘Frontier Basins: Deepwater Basins’ was about the exploration for conventional reservoirs and the identification of deepwater fields in the northern Gulf of Mexico which is characterized by extensive salt features. The various trapping styles of the reservoir were discussed by looking at the seismic profile of the area. Lastly, the final exercise of the workshop was on ‘Unconventional Reservoirs: Tight-Gas Sandstone Reservoirs’. A basin-centered gas accumulation in Piceance Basin in northwestern Colorado was used as an example to demonstrate the concepts, using wireline logs.

Before ending the workshop, Prof. Weimer also discussed the future of technology and the demand for unconventional resources. He also inspired the participants on the future career as geologists and what to expect at work. Finally, he emphasized the importance for students joining AAPG and remaining members throughout their careers.