Final preparations have been made and the program is in place for an important meeting that organizers say will be bigger, bolder and better than last year’s successful debut.
The second Unconventional Resources Technology Conference (URTeC) will be held Aug. 25-27 in Denver at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver and comes billed as the industry’s only integrated event for unconventional resource teams.
Last year’s inaugural event drew more than 4,300 participants – and favorable reviews from those attending.
URTeC is sponsored by AAPG, the Society of Petroleum Engineers and the Society for Exploration Geophysicists as a showcase and information exchange for various key disciplines in unconventional plays.
This year’s URTeC promises to have plenty of information and technology to share: “Overwhelming” was the word used by technical programs coordinators Alicia Collins and Terri Duncan to describe the response to a call for papers for the event.
And, according to surveys of last year’s participants, 100 percent said they found the event useful to them in their jobs and 91 percent said it succeeded in creating sessions of interest across disciplines.
This year’s URTeC will include more than 350 multi-themed technical sessions, topical breakfasts and luncheons, a plenary session, interactive panels and some of the industry’s most respected speakers and thought leaders.
The idea behind the conference is to bring together scientists, engineers and business managers to cross-pollinate ideas and encourage an “asset team” approach to exploration and production in fast-developing, unconventional plays.
Specifically, this year’s format will mirror the industry’s multidisciplinary approach to unconventional oil and gas through team presentations and panel discussions.
“We wanted to make it exciting and fresh. We’re trying to spark some innovation in the content and how we are presenting it,” said AAPG Honorary member R. Randy Ray, URTeC’s SEG co-chair and consulting geologist/geophysicist of R3 Exploration.
“We want this to be a multi-disciplinary experience with inter-disciplinary communication,” he added.
The technical program itself features 189 oral sessions, 117 e-papers and 27 team presentations. Cored rock from unconventional resource plays, including the Niobrara and Eagle Ford formations, from around the nation will be displayed in the exhibition hall.
“It’s not like your father’s convention,” Ray said.
Once again, participants can expect to find a dazzling display of technology on the exhibits floor. Almost 200 exhibitors participated in last year’s show.
Core exhibits – a popular attraction at last year’s exhibition – also will return.
Cores from several unconventional reservoirs will be on display during exhibit hours, allowing attendees to view the actual rocks and compare analyses and results summarized by service companies that performed the studies. Cores are expected from Haynesville, Bossier, Eagle Ford, Marcellus, Utica, Woodford, Niobrara, Tuscaloosa and Bakken.
The opening plenary session will have a panel of experts addressing the topic of “Using Science and Integrated Technologies to Develop Unconventional Plays.”
Other interactive panel discussions will include “Nimble Independents: ’Moving the Needle’ With Innovation and Execution Excellence,” (see related story page 6) “Converting Technology Into Dollars,” “Emerging International Plays” and “Water Management and the Link to License to Operate.”
In addition, various topical breakfasts and luncheons are planned along with several e-presentations, short courses and field trips.
Visit the URTeC website for more information.
Last year’s URTeC drew more than 4,300 people and rave reviews for its vast and varied exhibitions and technical programs. Expectations are even higher for this year.