Events and Special Sessions

Some events require separate ticket purchase. Purchase tickets now »

as of 9/12/13

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Saturday, 28 September

0800–1700

SPE Petroleum Engineering Certification Exam

Jasperwood Room, Third Floor, Hilton Riverside Hotel

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 study guide »

* SPE Certification is a credential of technical knowledge as demonstrated by exam. SPE Certification does not constitute a license to practice petroleum engineering or permit the use of the title engineer in public or on legal documents.

Sunday, 29 September

0830–1130

1300–1600

How to Write a Technical Paper

Room 231, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

SPE is committed to helping authors submit their best possible paper to conferences and journals. During ATCE, SPE will offer a free 3-hour session on how to write a good proposal and a great paper. This session will also include tips and tricks on making a good presentation and what it takes to prepare a paper for the peer-review process. One session is also offered on Tuesday.

Instructor: Byron Haynes

Byron is a Principal Reservoir Engineer with Shell Oil Company with over 28 years of experience working on projects in Texas, Alaska, Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait. Byron’s current assignment is chief reservoir engineer for Shell Kuwait Exploration and Production. He is a Shell Subject Matter Expert for Miscible Gas Flooding and PVT. Byron is a registered professional engineer in Alaska and Texas and has served as Chairman of the Alaska Board of Architects, Engineers and Land Surveyors. He has been an active member of SPE since 1978 serving on a number of diverse committees. He has published a number of technical papers for SPE and currently serves as an associate editor for the SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering journal. 

Please let us know if you plan to attend! RSVP to this event »

0730–1800

Section Leadership Workshop

Blaine Kern A/B/C, First Floor, Marriott Convention Center Hotel

Current and future section leaders are invited to participate in an action-packed day of sharing best practices and developing leadership skills. Participants will leave with the knowledge to make this the best-year-ever for their section. During lunch with the SPE International Board of Directors, winners of the President’s Award for Section Excellence will be honored.

Reservations are required. RSVP via email to sections@spe.org »

1000–1130

Student Meet and Greet

Great Hall B Foyer, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Make friends from around the world! SPE will have special activities at this event to help you meet and get to know other students.

Sponsored by:

1145–1400

Student Awards Luncheon and General Session

Great Hall B, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

The event begins with a complimentary lunch for those who reserve a ticket.

During the general session, students can learn more about their future professional careers. SPE will honor the Outstanding Student Chapters, and scholarship winners.

Sponsored by:

1300–1700

DSATS Drilling Systems Automation Symposium:

Update on State-of-the Art Automation Projects

Room 208, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Organized by the SPE Drilling Systems Automation Technical Section (DSATS)

Event ticket purchase is required.

The SPE Drilling Systems Automation Technical Section (DSATS) will hold another exciting half day-symposium on advances in drilling systems automation. 

Keynote speaker: N.P. Kulkarni, Ph.D, Chairman and CEO, Quarkonics

N.P. Kulkarni will discuss how a scientific organization partnered with an Oilfield Manufacturing company to solve a unique challenge and developed an automated drilling application to reduce drilling vibrations.

There will be three additional presentations from groups who are building, testing, and running automated drilling systems followed by an interactive panel discussion with leaders in this arena, including representatives from NOV and Apache.

Invitees:

• Moray Laing, SAS
• Pradeep Annaiyappa, Canrig
• Greg Ward, Rig Minder

Moderators: Tony Beebe and Tony Pink

Key themes include challenges, opportunities, and the benefits of drilling automation.

A networking reception will be held from 1715–1915 sponsored by National Oilwell Varco at the Café Ernst, an admirable establishment founded in 1902 and a 5-minute walk from the convention center.

Sponsored by:

1400–1800

Officer Leadership Workshop

Blaine Kern A/B/C, First Floor, Marriott Convention Center Hotel

Current and future student leaders are invited to collaborate and discuss new ideas and best practices for their chapters.

Reservations are required. RSVP via email to chapters@spe.org »

1930–2200

R&D Technical Section Dinner

Blaine Kern A/B/C, First Floor, Marriott Convention Center Hotel

Event ticket purchase is required.

"Oil and Gas R&D, What is Over the Horizon"

This event will feature a presentation about technology development and the need for more radical innovation to meet the future challenges in the oil and gas industry.

Sponsored by:

1930–2200

Digital Energy Technical Section (DETS) Dinner

Versailles Room, Third Floor, Hilton Riverside Hotel

Event ticket purchase is required.

Attend this dinner to hear about the Technical Section's new leadership, mission and objectives and how Digital Energy is now part of everyone’s daily activities.  Hear a keynote from an industry leader on the Digital Energy of the next generation.  Join other DETS members and top professionals to network, share technical information and exchange ideas through informal discussions. 

Program:

Sponsored by:

Monday, 30 September

0700–0900

25-Year Club Breakfast

Room 218, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

The 25-Year Club will host a breakfast with a keynote presentation.

Event ticket purchase is required.

The club, open daily, is located in Room 210, and a special lounge for SPE members with 25 years or more of continuous membership, Century Club members, current and former SPE Board officers and directors, as well as this year’s SPE International award winners and Distinguished Lecturers.

0800–0900

Welcome Breakfast Social

Lounge, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required.

This continental breakfast provides an opportunity for attendees to meet casually with friends attending the conference.

0800–1700

PetroBowl

Room R-3/4/5, Second Level, and Room R-7/8/9, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

The student PetroBowl contest will present student chapter teams in a tournament-style contest that tests knowledge of the E&P industry and SPE. A reception for the teams will immediately follow the event.

0900–1000

Coffee Break on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Sponsored by:

0900–1700

International Student Paper Contest

Watch presenters from around the world compete in the undergraduate, master’s, and PhD divisions.

1000–1200

Opening General Session

Deepwater Exploration and Developments – Challenging the Limits

Great Hall A, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

A forecast of increasing energy demand for the foreseeable future provides the catalyst for our industry to expand its search for new hydrocarbon resources and aggressively pursue new technologies to improve recovery from existing fields. 

Deepwater exploration and developments will be critical contributors to the effort, challenged on one hand by the limitation of existing technological capabilities, increasing costs of goods and services, and regulatory and compliance obligations, while stimulated on the other hand by industry’s intrigue with new exploration frontiers through the pursuit of opportunities into deeper water and in harsh operating environments.  

In this opening session, our panel of experts will discuss, the challenges our industry faces in its pursuit of deepwater exploration and development opportunities. These include the pursuit of deeper reservoirs in deeper water, subsurface imaging and knowledge of petroleum systems and reservoir distribution, higher reservoir temperatures or pressures, reservoir-rock composition and properties, fluid composition and characteristics, and pushing the capacity of today’s evaluation tools and equipment. The panel also will provide a forum to discuss the complexities associated with reservoir management & optimization, completion technologies, wellbore integrity & intervention, flow assurance and floating and subsea facilities.

While the list of challenges seems daunting to say the least, challenge brings opportunity, and opportunity evolves into great ideas and innovations that continue to make our industry unique and exciting.

1215–1345

Chairman’s Luncheon

Great Hall B, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
Event ticket purchase is required.

Speaker: Jose Formigli, Chief Exploration and Production Officer, Petrobras

The ATCE 2013 General Chairperson, Jose Formigli, Chief Exploration and Production Officer for Petrobras will share his insights on the oil and gas industry.

Sponsored by:

1400–1700

Special Session

Challenges and Innovative Solutions for the Brazilian Pre-Salt Fields

Room 333, Third Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

This session will present an overview of the technological challenges and solutions to produce oil from a province offshore Brazil known as the Pre-Salt. Discussions will show a general overview of the area, the technical aspects most important for its exploitation, reservoirs characterization, recovery factors, drilling technologies, subsea solutions, and a view of the future technologies to be applied in the Pre-Salt area.

1515–1545

Coffee Break on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Sponsored by:

1700–1800

Reception on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

This reception on the exhibit floor will welcome attendees and exhibitors to ATCE.

Sponsored by:

1730–1900

College and University Alumni Receptions

Hilton Riverside Hotel (see details below)

Many universities have scheduled alumni receptions to coincide with ATCE 2013. These events provide excellent opportunities for attendees to visit and get reacquainted with old friends, and to build new relationships with other professionals.

See a complete list of receptions »

1900–2200

Petroleum Data-Driven Analytics (PD2A) Technical Section Dinner

Versailles Ballroom, Third Floor, Hilton Riverside Hotel

"‘Watson-style’ Intelligence:  is it a Whole New World?"

Speaker: Currie Boyle, IBM Distinguished Engineer

Event ticket purchase is required.

Sponsored by:

1900–2200

Projects, Facilities, and Construction Dinner

Room 218, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required. Purchase your ticket here »

"Determining the Basis of Design for PF&C Projects – Why Facilities Engineers Need to Think"

Panelists: David Aron (PDC), Mark Hollar (SBM), Maurice Mullaly (Worley Parsons), and Luigi Saputelli  (Frontender)

Oil and gas production is fraught with uncertainty. Reservoir properties are determined from very limited information. Until production startup we have only estimates of the most important design parameters including production flowrate, oil gravity, GOR, gas density, water composition, etc. And many of these variables will change over time. An initial Basis of Design may constrain the facility design to meet specific parameters with little flexibility built in to account for reservoir uncertainties or the effects on facility Capex and Opex in trying to accommodate the wish lists of reservoir engineers.    

Join us as we discuss the impact of reservoir uncertainty from a projects, facilities and construction point of view. Invited panelists will present reservoir engineering, operating company and detailed design perspectives.

Sponsored by:

Tuesday, 1 October

0700–0800

Distinguished Lecturer Breakfast

Versailles Ballroom, Third Level, Hilton Riverside Hotel

This is an invitation-only ticketed event.

More than 800 Distinguished Lecturers have served SPE members around the world since 1961. Current and past lecturers and their guest are invited to attend a special breakfast honoring their contribution to the success of this program. A guest speaker will present updates on what’s new with the DL program.

0830–1130

How to Write a Technical Paper

Room 231, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
SPE is committed to helping authors submit their best possible paper to conferences and journals. During ATCE, SPE will offer a free 3-hour session on how to write a good proposal and a great paper. This session will also include tips and tricks on making a good presentation and what it takes to prepare a paper for the peer-review process. Two sessions are also offered on Sunday.

Instructor: Byron Haynes

Byron is a Principal Reservoir Engineer with Shell Oil Company with over 28 years of experience working on projects in Texas, Alaska, Gulf of Mexico, North Sea, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait. Byron’s current assignment is chief reservoir engineer for Shell Kuwait Exploration and Production. He is a Shell Subject Matter Expert for Miscible Gas Flooding and PVT. Byron is a registered professional engineer in Alaska and Texas and has served as Chairman of the Alaska Board of Architects, Engineers and Land Surveyors. He has been an active member of SPE since 1978 serving on a number of diverse committees. He has published a number of technical papers for SPE and currently serves as an associate editor for the SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering journal. 

Please let us know if you plan to attend! RSVP to this event »

0830–1155

Special Session

So We Frac’d the Well, Now What?

Room 333, Third Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

The boom in oil and gas production from shale has been a marvel of technical development, and rapid industry uptake and implementation.  However, as past experience shows, drilling booms do not last forever.

To date, industry focus has mostly been on drilling, completion, fracturing and early production. Decisions made to expedite these processes, can have adverse long-term effects. More effort is needed to understand how fractured shale reservoirs will perform long term. Closely related is the need for better monitoring tools and information systems. Furthermore, stimulation methods, tools and artificial lift systems will be required. Reliable wellbore integrity, over the life of the well and after abandonment, must be demonstrated. Not the least of the long-term needs is sustained engagement with local communities and the general public.

This panel session brings together industry experts from the relevant disciplines to discuss the issues related to long-term viability of oil and gas production from shale.

0900–1300

New Event!

Soft Skills Workshop I

Negotiation Skills and Conflict Resolution – Proven Techniques to Achieve a Win/Win Solution

Room 209, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required. Lunch is included.

"The most important trip you may take in life is meeting people half way." – Henry Boyle

Negotiation skills and the ability to manage and resolve conflicts play an important role in the life of a petroleum industry professional. Examples range from negotiating an employment contract to establishing partnerships in oil and gas ventures and on to arranging business alliances with service providers. Conflicts can happen in a competitive or collaborative work environment, and if not managed properly, they can result in significant losses and failure to achieve business objectives.

This 3-hour workshop intends to emphasize the critical importance of negotiation skills and conflict resolution in the workplace environment. Hands-on, realistic examples will help to demonstrate the need for soft competencies for all professionals across the workforce generations.

1010–1040

Coffee Break on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
Sponsored by:

1200–1630

New Event!

Soft Skills Workshop II

Factoring Personality Type in Your Professional Development and Career Choices - An Introduction to the MBTI and its Applications for Young Professionals

Room 206/207, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required. Lunch is included.

This workshop will introduce you to the concept of personality type and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), a tool used worldwide to help individuals gain awareness of their strengths and blind-spots, focus their development for increased interpersonal effectiveness, and make career choices that are more likely to bring them satisfaction. The MBTI is also widely used to help build mutual understanding and tolerance, identify opportunities to leverage personality differences among team members, and improve overall teamwork effectiveness. Join us to learn about why this tool has gained such popularity in a variety of environments, from leadership development programs in many of the Fortune 100 companies to career centers, and marriage counseling services.

1215–1345

Wellbore Positioning Technical Section Topical Luncheon

Rolling the Dice on your Well Position

Great Hall B, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required.

The risk involved with well position calculations can often be seen as difficult to quantify. This luncheon will look at some Best Practices that can improve the odds of success, including paying attention to magnetization of your drilling motors and BHA components.

1215–1345

R&D Technical Section Topical Luncheon

Production Monitoring and Control System Technologies Today and in the Future:  Applications, Impacts and R&D Needs

Great Hall A, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required.

The SPE Research and Development Technical Section will host a special topical luncheon to facilitate focused dialogue on Production Monitoring and Control System Technologies. In a series of informative and thought provoking presentations, a panel of industry experts will discuss current uses and future opportunities for these technologies as well as outline the various R&D challenges and needs that must be addressed to overcome their present limitations. A panel question and answer session will follow the presentations.

Program

1200–1400

Expo Luncheon on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

1400–1700

Special Session

Knowledge Sharing on Separator Design

Room 333, Third Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Reliable separation is becoming an enabling technology to develop remote location resources (e.g. Arctic, deep-water) and more difficult applications (e.g. heavy oil, produced water, sand disposal, and back-produced EOR fluids). Separations expertise and know-how are scattered around the globe with no centralized organization to foster separation technology learnings, fundamental research, device qualification, or network to discuss common problems among experts. The Separation Technology Section (STS) will help address these challenges by sponsoring webinars, forums, conferences, capture lessons learned, and eventually even foster some JIPs. This STS sponsored session will cover separation topics ranging from issues with conventional separator design to emerging technology trend.

Panel Discussion: Challenges of Using CFD in Separations

1515–1545

Coffee Break on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
Sponsored by:

1630–1730

Young Member Happy Hour

Room 214, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Sponsored by:

1630–1730

Happy Hour on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Sponsored by:

1830–2300

Annual Reception and Banquet

Louisiana and Freedom Pavilions – World War II Museum

Event will take place off site. Event ticket purchase is required.

Join us to celebrate key successes within SPE and the oil and gas industry as a whole. Prior to the Annual Banquet, all banquet attendees are invited to gather for a reception and tour the exhibits in the Louisiana Pavilion. The Annual Banquet recognizes outstanding SPE members who have made significant contributions to the industry.

Sponsored by:

Wednesday, 2 October

0730–1500

Energy4me "Energize Your Classroom" Teacher Workshop

Room 206, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Energy4me, SPE’s energy education outreach program, will invite 100 New Orleans-area classroom teachers (grades 4 -12) to attend a free, 1-day energy education workshop. Educators will receive comprehensive, objective information about the scientific concepts of energy and its importance while discovering the world of oil and natural gas exploration and production.

Sponsored by:

0830–1330

Energy4me High School Student STEM Event

Room 218, Second Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Energy4me, SPE’s energy education outreach program, is educating the next generation of aspiring engineers, scientists and managers about the oil and gas industry. Approximately 200 high school students will see firsthand the exciting opportunities in the oil and gas industry. Students will have the opportunity to perform hands-on experiments and explore advance technology on the exhibition floor.

0830–1010

Special Session

Power Drilling, Completions, and Hydraulic Fracturing Operations with Natural Gas

Room 333, Third Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Industry has converted drilling rigs to natural gas in many areas around the world. The infrastructure for fueling the rigs, however, has been lagging. Converting the higher horsepower engines for hydraulic fracturing operations may contain limiting factors and any changes to original configurations of certified engines are a potential violation of the Clean Air Act prohibition and against tampering. The panel will discuss the technical, logistical and legal challenges concerning the use of natural gas to power operations.

1000-1200

Insights into Employee Attraction and Retention from the SPE Talent Council Survey

Room 209, Second Level,  Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

The SPE Talent Council Survey on factors impacting attractions and retention of employees shows significant differences between different groups of men and women including whether they are over or under the age of 40, and whether or not they are part of a dual career couple. Both men and women under the age of 40 are now most likely to be part of a couple in which both people work full time.  Learn what makes employers attractive to both young employees and how to entice older employees to return or stay in the workforce to share their skills.

1040–1155

Special Session

Planned Continuation Bias

Room 333, Third Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

In the 1990's, a US airline suffered a major, preventable accident and one of the contributing causes was called Plan Continuation Bias. After that accident, the airline industry looked backed at many other accidents and found this to be the number one human factor on 40% of their accidents. Now, the airlines are equipping their crews with the skill to recognize Plan-Continuation Bias and how to handle it correctly. Another lesson learned from the airline is channelized behavior.  This condition is produced when the human becomes task overloaded and devotes his entire “scan” on one item only. Instead of stepping back and performing a 5 X 5, he is gathering information through a straw. Inevitably, the crew makes critical errors in decision making and increases risk and inefficiencies to him and the organization. The goal of this session is to define Plan Continuation Bias/Channelized Behavior, provide some useful tools that HSE Managers can use for their crews to reduce these effects and identify the differences in incident reporting programs between the two industries.

Speaker: Andrew Dingee, Human Factors Technical Section

1010–1040

Coffee Break on Exhibit Floor

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Sponsored by:

1200–1330

President’s Luncheon and Annual Meeting of Members

Great Hall A, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Event ticket purchase is required.

Attend this prestigious event where 2013 SPE President Egbert Imomoh will share the achievements and new initiatives to benefit members. You will also have the opportunity to meet SPE Board members, 2013 SPE President Jeff Spath, SPE Distinguished Members and learn more about outstanding sections and volunteers.

Sponsored by:

1330–1400

Coffee and Dessert with Exhibitors

Exhibit Halls B–E, Street Level, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center

Sponsored by: