Topical Luncheons
Topical luncheons present leading experts who discuss a broad range of compelling topics. OTC attendees hear presentations on management, implementation, research, and technology-related fields in the offshore industry. Topical luncheons are USD 40 each. Because seating is limited, you are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance.
Monday, 5 May
1215–1345
Offshore Oil and Gas Turns 70: Is Rust More Evil Than Depletion? - SOLD OUT
Matt Simmons, Chairman, Simmons & Company International
This presentation will address the rapidly aging offshore infrastructure of an industry that once boasted the newest aspects for global oil and gas.In 2007, we mark the 70th anniversary of when the first offshore well was drilled beyond the sight of man. In 2008, we will markthe 40th anniversary of when oil was first found off the Norwegian coast.
Offshore oil and gas ended up being the only way the world could expand its use of both. Onshore oil supplies peaked in the late 1970s and are now off almost 15 million B/D, with 20% of the growth in global oil and gas supplies coming from offshore. Much of the expensive technical infrastructure that created this offshore miracle is beyond its original design life. The decommissioning costs in the North Sea could total USD 40 to 60 billion, and the average offshore rig is 25 years old.
For 2 decades, the price of oil and gas was so low that companies that survived this era became adept in cost cutting. An obvious casualty was expensive preventative maintenance. In the offshore environment, even the best maintenance only slows down the rusting process.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
by
US Offshore Oil and Gas Production: Its Impact--Present and Future - SOLD OUT
Tony D. Vaughn, Vice President and General Manager Gulf Coast Division, Devon Energy
US offshore oil and gas activity has materially evolved over the past decade with a growing projected impact to total domestic production. New plays in deep water have shown encouraging results to date; however, technical, commercial, and political challenges seem to be growing. Increasing costs, increased royalties, taxation, and limited access are all threats to continued offshore exploration and development of new resources.
The future of the domestic offshore energy industry will be greatly shaped during the coming decade as consideration is brought to these subjects and others such as the need for skilled labor, the need for continued research and new technologies, the ability of the producers and the service sector to meet increasing technical challenges, and the industry’s ability to work safely while protecting the environment.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
by
China Offshore: Technical Challenges, Perspective, and Cooperation Opportunities - SOLD OUT
Shouwei Zhou , Vice President, CNOOC
China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is the largest offshore oil and gas producer and third-largest national oil company in China. CNOOC has governmental authority over cooperation with foreign partners for oil and gas exploration and production in China’s waters.
To meet the challenge that 50% of the reserves are marginal fields and 70% are heavy oil, CNOOC has developed a series of unique technologies, such as “bee technology” (portable facilities) and three mini-technologies (one mini-platform, one pipeline, and one umbilical).
CNOOC has economically developed 25 offshore marginal fields and put an offshore ultraheavy oil field into production. Having also begun deepwater exploration and having made a giant discovery with the appraisal well, CNOOC is planning significant investment for deepwater projects in the South China Sea.
This presentation will introduce unique CNOOC-developed E&P technologies, show CNOOC’s prospective and deepwater E&P strategies, and discuss how to become involved in the tremendous international cooperation opportunities in China offshore
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
by
Canada’s Next Offshore Natural Gas Development - SOLD OUT
David Kopperson, Vice President Offshore East Coast Canada, EnCana
Deep Panuke is Canada's next offshore development off Nova Scotia. Construction has begun and involves the installation of facilities that are required to produce and process natural gas from the field operated by Encana. The field is approximately 250 km southeast of Nova Scotia on the Scotian Shelf. The project involves production and processing of gas offshore, and transport, via subsea pipeline, of market-ready gas to Goldboro, Nova Scotia, for further transport to markets in Canada and the northeast US on the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline. Regulatory applications for Deep Panuke were filed in 2006. Project sanction was expected in late 2007.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Tuesday, 6 May
1215–1345
Awards Luncheon
At the Awards Luncheon, OTC recognizes outstanding achievements in the offshore E&P industry by honoring an individual and organization or company with an OTC Distinguished Achievement Award.
The keynote address titled "New Perspectives for Mexico’s Hydrocarbon Sector" will be given by Jesús F. Reyes-Heroles, director general, Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX). Tickets for this limited seating luncheon are USD 40.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Wednesday, 7 May
1215–1345
by
Sustainable Strategies for Staffing the Energy Industry - SOLD OUT
Abe Palaz, Director of Educational and R&D Partnership, Halliburton
To continue to satisfy the ever-increasing demand for hydrocarbons, we must have the right people in the right jobs. And those people must be engaged and equipped to contribute. There are numerous challenges to achieving this goal with the rapid growth of our industry in developing countries and a less-than-positive image of the industry in some parts of the world.
Strategies to assure that long-term human resource needs are identified and met to sustain our ability to provide services to the energy industry will be presented. These strategies include preparing for a very different mix of competencies that could be necessitated by the array of options in unconventional resources and alternative fuels; attracting people to our industry who have the core capabilities needed, training them to perform, and retaining them by providing long-term career growth potential and superior working conditions; dealing with the globalization of the work force, including the power of heterogeneity of thought; redefining jobs and skill sets to make intelligent use of real-time, remote decision-making tools; and methods to assure a more diverse workforce.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Industry and Government Model for Ultradeepwater Technology Research, Development, Demonstration, and Commercialization - SOLD OUT
Chris Haver, DeepStar Director and Vice President Ultradeepwater Technology Program, Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA)
A new program of research, development, demonstration, and commercial application of technologies for ultradeepwater is underway in the US.This initiative links industry, suppliers, researchers, and government in a cooperative, focused effort to increase hydrocarbon reserves and production.The focus of the program is provided by defining four generic Gulf of Mexico fields that frame current opportunities, facility requirements, operating limitations, and technical gaps that challenge developments today.These challenges have been matured and jointly prioritized by the Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (RPSEA) and DeepStar subject matter experts into a promising ultradeepwater program portfolio. This presentation will provide an overview of the funding program, the role of the DeepStar consortium, and the first year's project portfolio.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Lower Tertiary: A New Wave of Change in Ultradeepwater Gulf of Mexico - SOLD OUT
Stephen Thurston, Vice President, Chevron North America Exploration and Production Company
This presentation will focus on the emerging Lower Tertiary Wilcox trend of the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, as well as how Chevron and the industry are addressing its challenges and opportunities with ingenuity and developing technologies.
The Lower Tertiary Wilcox is a 300 mile (483km), salt-laced trend generally older, deeper, and tighter than any strata ever produced in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. Chevron’s record-setting deep well test at Jack last year was an important milestone in the ongoing analysis of the producibility and commerciality of the significant oil in place of this new trend. Even with increased understanding of this emerging trend, in order to realize its potential value, a step-change in technological solutions will be required. Technological challenges and emerging solutions that will be highlighted in the presentation are sub-salt imaging, drilling and completions, and facility and infrastructure design.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Thursday, 8 May
1215–1345
NEW - Investment Opportunities in a Reformed Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry
Odein Ajumogobia, Minister of State for Energy (Petroleum), Nigeria
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Methane Hydrate Challenges and Future
Bradley Tomer, Director, Strategic Center for Natural Gas and Oil, US Department of Energy
Over the past 5 years, unprecedented progress has been made in methane hydrate research and development. The research, enabled by the Methane Hydrate Research and Development Act of 2000 and the subsequent 2005 amendment, has resulted in significant advances in the understanding of methane hydrates, their role in nature, and their potential as a future energy resource. This success is largely due to an unprecedented level of cooperation between federal agencies, industry, labs, and academia.
This presentation will discuss the achievements made in the better characterization of the chemical and physical properties of hydrates, the development of technology needed to achieve a more complete survey of hydrate distribution, an improved understanding of how to mitigate the hazards that hydrates pose to ongoing deepwater drilling and production, an improved understanding of how hydrates interact with the natural environment, an improved understanding and protection of biological communities dependent upon hydrate occurrences, the development of improved tools for studying hydrates in the lab and the field, an appraisal of technologies for the safe and commercial production of methane from hydrates, and an appraisal of industry resources that will enable cost-efficient research and development in the field.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
How Is LNG Changing the Natural Gas Markets in North America?
Davis Thames, President, Cheniere Marketing
The US imported record amount of LNG during the summer of 2007.Another six LNG regasification terminals are under construction in North America.These new LNG regasification terminals will add 12 Bcf/D of incremental regas capacity by 2010.How will the natural gas markets in North America respond?Is there a sufficient amount of global liquefaction capacity to meet the worldwide demand for natural gas?How will it impact exploration for new reserves in North America?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Improving US Energy Policy Through Better Dialogue Between Consumers and the Energy Industry
Michael D. Whatley, Vice President, Consumer Energy Alliance
In Washington, DC, Democrats and Republicans have started the US down the path of alternative energy development in response to growing public concerns about energy security and global climate change. While debate to determine the best course to take is ongoing, the current approach is not a balanced one that meets growing energy and price needs in the short term while addressing the environment over the long term.A comprehensive, national energy strategy must do both.
According to the analysis by Consumer Energy Alliance, even if the US fully implements every single proposed alternative energy initiative over the next decade, we will only displace 5% of US oil and gas demand.
Consumer Energy Alliance is working with a broad array of industry and consumer groups to develop a long-term communications strategy to help shift the focus of debate to a more realistic, inclusive, and balanced vision of a diverse portfolio of energy supplies, including windmill, solar, biofuels, petroleum, and clean-burning natural gas. American consumers deserve a balanced energy policy that safely and efficiently utilizes available natural gas and oil while it helps build a future that improves our environment.