AAPG is a global community of energy geoscientists. Each year we have multiple opportunities to gather with each other and with other energy professionals to learn, share and connect. It’s an important aspect of building community, and I’d like to share three fantastic opportunities to connect this month.
The business of energy is our focus each year in February with NAPE Summit. Together with our partners the American Association of Professional Landmen, the Independent Producers Association of America and the Society of Exploration Geophysicists, we return to the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston Feb. 7-9 with “the world’s largest, most successful marketplace where the primary purpose is connecting decision makers and investors” focused on the energy sector.
NAPE Schedule of Events
The Energy Business Conference on Wednesday, Feb. 7 will again include two tracks. The business track will highlight market trends in oil, natural gas and power, look at opportunities in emerging sectors, such as carbon capture utilization and storage, and look ahead to potential impacts of the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
The technical track will cover emerging trends including the application of AI technology in evaluating plays, trends and operations, the opportunities for extracting lithium from brine, risk assessment in potential CCUS reservoirs and the topic of orphan wells.
"Meetings are where we learn, share, and connect. February is a busy month to do just that, and I hope you’ll be able to attend one or more of these events."
Arjun Murti, a partner at Veriten focused on energy macroeconomics and policy, will deliver the luncheon talk, and the business conference panel will conclude with a Governor’s Forum entitled “Backing American Energy” and featuring Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt.
A new twist this year is that the NAPE Charities Celebration is shifting from a luncheon to a reception after the Energy Business Conference concludes (a separate ticket is required).
Then on Thursday and Friday, the show floor will be buzzing as attendees inspect prospects from around the globe. In the exhibit hall there will be:
- Domestic and international prospect previews
- Renewable Energy Hub and prospect previews
- Bitcoin Mining Hub and prospect previews
- Mineral and Non-Op Hub and prospect previews
In addition, AAPG past president Scott Tinker will give the Expo lunch buffet keynote address.
IPTC in Dhahran
As the exhibit hall closes on Friday afternoon, it’s time to head to the airport and jump aboard your plane to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, where the International Petroleum Technology Conference is scheduled to take place from Feb. 12-14
A partnership of AAPG, the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers, SEG, and the Society of Petroleum Engineers, IPTC is one of the most influential energy events held each year in the Eastern Hemisphere. Its multidisciplinary technical focus – geoscience and engineering – connected with high-level ministerial and executive sessions provides an unparalleled opportunity to understand how our industry is evolving globally.
The conference opening will include a special one-on-one ministerial session with HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, the energy minister of Saudia Arabia, who will provide insights into how he sees global energy markets today and in the future.
Later in the day, Amin Nasser, president and CEO of exclusive host Aramco, has invited his colleagues Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, and Meg O’Neill, CEO and managing director of Woodside Energy, to join him for a discussion on “achieving a balanced energy transition.”
On Tuesday, the executive special session is focused on “managing uncertainties for a prosperous future,” and features Nasir K. Al-Naimi, upstream president of Aramco, Jack Williams, senior vice-president at ExxonMobil Corporation, Montri Rawanchaikul, CEO of PTT Exploration and Production Public Company Limited, and Olivier Le Peuch, CEO of SLB.
In addition to these and other executive dialogue sessions, there is a complete technical program highlighting advances in geology, geophysics and engineering with sessions on:
- AI applications in geology and geophysics
- Petroleum geology case studies
- Integrated reservoir characterization
- Exploring CCS frontiers: screening and evaluation
- Basin evolution modeling
The technical program committee has diligently developed a program that spans the broad set of topics required to safely and securely deliver the oil and natural gas that the world needs. There is something for everyone at this conference.
IPTC also features a sold-out exhibition with companies from across the globe showcasing the latest in technology and their services available to the industry.
Orphan Wells Workshop
When you get home from IPTC, you’ve got a few weeks to rest up before heading to Pittsburgh for a special workshop: “Orphan, Abandoned, and Marginal Wells: Opportunities with Plugging, Repurposing, Carbon Credits, and More.”
The Feb.27-28 workshop, with support of AAPG’s Division of Environmental Geology, follows on a similar workshop conducted in Oklahoma City last year. It brings together operators, regulators, non-profit and academic organizations to “learn about the new opportunities and best practices for plugging orphan, idle and abandoned wells, and to comply with new requirements for funding, methane emissions measurement and monitoring, groundwater protection, and more."