SPE ATCE 2012 highlights developing unconventional resources

NELL LUKOSAVICH, Senior Editor

ATCE 2011’s final numbers, with 8,000 attendees and 300 exhibiting companies, should be exceeded by this year’s event.

While the term, unconventional, has traditionally been used to describe emerging oil and gas resources, with an abundance of newly discovered formations and advancing technology to bring these resources onstream, what was considered an unconventional resource is now more of a mainstream operation. The SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition (ATCE), 2012, seeks to explore the technology advances, development models, regulatory influences and knowledge transfer for these vast resources.

“The oil and gas industry is experiencing a time of tremendous growth and change. Unconventional resources have created new challenges and areas for expertise,” said SPE. “Expertise is scattered throughout the world, so events like ATCE can bring these new and experienced experts together to share experiences and enhance global knowledge.”

This 88th ATCE will be held Oct. 8—10, 2012, at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas. The three-day event will contain an exhibition of more than 400 companies (the largest number in show history), morning and afternoon sessions, and panel discussions. More than 400-plus peer-selected technical papers will be presented on the topics of drilling and completions; production and operations; projects, facilities, and construction; management and information; reservoir description and dynamics; health, safety and environment; and reservoir description and dynamics.

During the weekend before the show starts, on Saturday, Oct. 6, there will be a series of training courses, as well as the SPE Petroleum Engineering Certification Exam. A variety of events will occur on Sunday, Oct. 7. Several student activities, including a meet-and-greet, student general session and awards ceremony, student great ideas session, and a student chapter officer workshop, will take place. There will also be an R&D technical session meeting and dinner, as well as a series of training courses and presentation series.

Debut of cross-generational program. For the first time this year, ATCE will host a cross-generational program entitled, “Cross generational teams adding value to the workplace.” The program will focus on industry-related challenges and how students, and young, mid-career or seasoned professionals, are able to collaborate on developing solutions. A case study will be presented, and teams of participants will combine their personal experiences, technical knowledge and communication skills to present a solution.

Digital multimedia. This year’s ATCE features several tools to enhance attendees’ experiences and help reach out to members who can’t attend the event. The ATCE mobile app provides on-the-go, interactive information. On the app, attendees can browse up-to-the-minute exhibitor, speaker and event details, view maps, take notes, rate sessions they attend, schedule appointments, and more.

SPE TV will be broadcast from ATCE, sharing interviews and highlights from each day’s events. Attendees can watch on TV screens, on-site, and non-attendees can watch through the website, www.spe.org/atce. ATCE Network is a new tool for attendees to connect. Attendees can find out which of their LinkedIn contacts are attending, see recommendations of other attendees with matching interests, communicate with them securely, and plan one-on-one meetings. ATCE Network can be accessed through the ATCE website or the mobile app.

Introductory sessions. This year’s show session on Monday, Oct. 8, from 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m., and entitled, “Making unconventionals conventional, will be led by Mark Albers of ExxonMobil, Timothy Dove of Pioneer Natural Resources and Steve Holditch of Texas A&M University. The panel discussion, upon which the show is themed, will explore the role of world energy demand, and the technologies and best practices necessary to develop unconventional oil and gas resources. The afternoon opening session, entitled “Partnering with communities in order to maintain our license to operate,” will discuss strategies and challenges in working responsibly with local governments and communities.

Technical program. ATCE 2012 will highlight a variety of upstream topics, from drilling and completions, through reservoir dynamics and production operations. A sample of highlighted topics includes:

• New technology and methods for subsurface formation evaluation.
• Reservoir simulation technologies, from hardware to 4D seismic
• Drilling operations
• Completion optimization in unconventional reservoirs
• Fracture diagnostics measurements and models
• Advances in flow characterization technologies
• Thermal recovery methods and mechanisms for heavy oil reservoirs
• Best practices in field management
• Creating value with unconventionals
• Conventional and unconventional perspectives on education, training and employee development.

For a full schedule of the technical program, please see Table 1.

SPE petroleum engineering certification exam. SPE will offer a certification exam for members interested in becoming certified under the SPE Petroleum Engineering Certification Program. This program provides E&P professionals an opportunity to validate technical knowledge, show a commitment to professionalism, obtain a recognized credential, and achieve employer and peer recognition. Register for the exam and download the exam study guide at www.spe.org/certification.