Publications

Explorer Historical Highlights By Robert Bertagne

Dubai’s Rise from Bedouin Tents to Skyscrapers

On Aug. 3, 1966, Continental Oil Company’s Fateh-1 wildcat came in at a rate of approximately 100,000 barrels of oil per day, but with little fanfare in the oil world. Located offshore 55 miles north of the port of Dubai, the discovery was the result of a chain of events that were initiated in the early 1950s by two driven executives with different backgrounds but a shared vision of the future.

Added on 01 January, 2024

Explorer Article By Barry Friedman

The Oil Industry, By Any Other Name

There’s an old adage that “the Stone Age didn’t end because we ran out of stones.” What does this have to do with oil and gas? According to Carlos Garibaldi, executive secretary of ARPEL, plenty. He said it’s a sentiment that should be both reassuring and motivating to those in the oil and gas industry, especially as the future energy landscape is so in flux.

Added on 01 April, 2023

Explorer Article By David Brown

Offshore Investment Sees Massive Revival

Over the next two years, led by the Middle East and South America, a resurgent offshore sector is poised to reach its highest level of activity in more than a decade. That’s right: the Middle East. With so much happening around the world, the energy industry will need to play catch-up to prepare for future growth.

Added on 01 April, 2023

Explorer President’s Column By David Curtiss

The ‘Integrated Evolution’ of the Geoscience Workforce

“When aspiration and reality collide, in my experience reality wins every time,” said Jeff Miller, chairman, president and CEO of Halliburton, last month at the inaugural Middle East Oil, Gas and Geosciences Show (MEOS GEO) in Bahrain. He made the remark in the context of a CEO discussion about the industry and its response to the energy transition. The truth of his observation is much broader. As AAPG identifies and prepares new ways to serve its members and attract new members for decades to come, it’s important for us to understand the facts, as best we can. If our strategy is to succeed, it must be based on reality. One reality we face in the United States and Europe is dwindling enrollments in the geosciences, and the jobs these graduates are getting are rapidly changing.

Added on 01 March, 2023

Explorer Historical Highlights By Rasoul Sorkhabi

Steineke of Arabia

Working in arduous desert conditions and leading a team of explorers in the 1930s and ‘40s from the company that would come to be Aramco, Max Steineke put Saudi Arabia on the world petroleum map. A definitive, book-length biography of Steineke is yet to be written, but what follows outlines his career and contributions to petroleum geology and exploration during a period and in places far from the comforts, facilities and technologies enjoyed today. And yet, his exploration output from a single basin remains unparalleled, and his story offers valuable insights.

Added on 01 March, 2023

Explorer Emphasis Article By David Brown

Clean Energy Opportunity Adds to Super Basins Appeal

Energy super basins grabbed the attention of the oil and gas industry during the past five years, with good reason. Now a period of re-evaluation has kicked in. Producers are looking beyond total resource potential to apply other criteria, including economic, environmental and regulatory considerations. Those yardsticks could help identify which basins will dominate energy production in the decades ahead.

Added on 01 February, 2023

Explorer Article By David Brown

Energy Investment in 2023 Tracks with Transition

Large institutions and asset managers are diversifying away from traditional oil and gas projects, sometimes driven by climate concerns, but their investments haven’t fallen far afield. Those organizations think in terms of billions of dollars when evaluating a potential investment sector. And so far, they haven’t hesitated to invest in energy. What has changed, and what keeps changing, is where they put those investment dollars. It’s an energy-investment transition that parallels today’s ongoing energy transition.

Added on 01 February, 2023

Explorer Emphasis Article By Emily Llinás

The Role of Hydrogen in Latin America’s Energy Transition

Natural disasters worldwide, public debate, policy decisions and shareholder pressure are just some of the factors motivating companies to seek alternatives to traditional oil and gas to fuel the ever-increasing demand for energy worldwide. One of those alternatives is hydrogen – a renewable energy source that proponents believe brings a wealth of opportunities and challenges. Argentina’s national energy company YPF is one such proponent. They are considering using natural gas from the massive Vaca Muerta play to produce “blue hydrogen,” which is produced by combining natural gas and steam.

Added on 01 November, 2022

Explorer Historical Highlights By Mir-Yusif Mir-Babayev

Oil Rocks: Early Offshore Production from the Caspian City in the Sea

In 1949 an historic oil field was discovered under the Caspian Sea. The field was named “Neft Dashlari, which in Azerbaijani means “Oil Rocks,” and it was a milestone in the development of the global oil industry. Oil Rocks, an iconic “city in the sea,” pointed the way to modern offshore drilling as we know it today.

Added on 01 September, 2022

Explorer Article By David Brown

Middle East Sees Major Growth in Natural Gas Development

Mention energy from the Middle East and most people automatically think of crude oil production. But today, geopolitics and supply challenges have put an increased focus on global natural gas resources. Consequently, energy developments in the Middle East are shifting toward natural gas production and export, driven by an increasing international appetite for gas supply and questions about longer-term oil demand. Right now, the bottom line is that natural gas looks like a long-term growth industry and crude oil doesn’t.

Added on 01 September, 2022

Publications

About Us

Office Contacts

STAY CONNECTED: