Workshop Details
About Muscat
Muscat presents a relatively homogeneous appearance of low, generally white
buildings, with residential, government, and commercial architecture frequently
recalling, at least by allusion, historic regional styles. Muscat has seen an
explosion of infrastructure development and urbanization. Mutrah, 3km northwest
of Muscat, is the main trading and residential port area. A few kilometers
inland from Muscat and Mutrah lays Ruwi, the capital's modern commercial
district. There are three forts in Muscat, all of which took on their more or
less present form in the 1580s during the Portuguese occupation of Muscat.
Mutrah Fort sits on a hill while Jalali and Mirani forts guard the entrance to
Muscat. All of the forts are still used by the police and/or military. Muscat
has by far the best aquarium in the Gulf. All of the specimens on display are
native to Omani waters and most are accompanied by thorough descriptions in
English. The Oman Museum, in the Medinat Qaboos, west of Muscat, covers the
entire sweep of Oman's 5000-year history. There are also
displays on shipbuilding, Islam and fort architecture. In Ruwi, the National
Museum has sparkling displays on Omani silverwork, and the Sultan's Armed
Forces Museum, in the Bait al-Falaj fort, has an excellent outline of Omani
history.
About the Venue
The Grand Hyatt Muscat is a luxurious hotel on the beachfront of the Gulf of Oman's coast. The hotel features an outdoor pool, restaurants, a fitness facility, and grounds punctuated by palm trees and green foliage. About 11 miles from the Seeb airport, the hotel is convenient to the area's main business district and a short drive from historic old Muscat.
Format
The workshop will start with an icebreaker reception and dinner followed by two and a half days of informal discussions prompted by selected keynote presentations and discussions. Attendees will be assigned to discussion groups on a random basis for each session to maximise the opportunity to interact with other participants.
Attendance
Registration will be accepted on a first-come-first-served basis. The Steering Committee encourages attendance from those who can contribute to the workshop most effectively. A mix of attendees in terms of geographic origin, companies, and discipline will be encouraged.
Scribe
The Steering Committee will appoint a scribe to record the discussions and to produce the full workshop report. This report will be circulated to all attendees as the workshop deliverable within 4-6 weeks following the workshop. The copyright of the report is with SPE.
Attendance Certificate
All attendees will receive an attendance certificate attesting to their participation in the workshop. This certificate will be provided in exchange for a completed workshop questionnaire.
Continuing Education Units
This workshop qualifies for SPE Continuing Education Units (CEU) at the rate of 0.1 CEU per hour of the workshop.
