The SPE Podcast

Technical sections offer SPE members a powerful way to learn, share, connect and grow. From webinars and awards to student programs and global networking, these communities provide opportunities to build technical expertise and lasting professional relationships. Discover why they may be one of SPE’s most valuable member benefits.

This SPE Live will explore whether and how geomechanics plays a critical role in influencing and improving how our industry understands, develops, and manages subsurface resources. Key discussion points will highlight the value of geomechanics, particularly when it is not treated in isolation but integrated with geology, geophysics, petrophysics, reservoir engineering, drilling, completions, and production to build a more comprehensive understanding of formation behavior.We invite practitioners, researchers, users, and service providers to discuss challenging issues surrounding the importance of geomechanics and explore how the exchange of knowledge and best practices can strengthen the profession.

Moderated by: Claudia Bonin, Adjunct Professor at Houston Christian University and Geomechanics Technical Section Officer

Speakers:

• Peggy Rijken, SPE Completions Technical Director. General Manager, Geomechanics Center of Excellence at Chevron Technology Center

• Koji Yamamoto, Geomechanical Engineer at Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security and SPE Asia Pacific Regional Director

Join SPE President, Prof. Jennifer Miskimins, in this SPE Live with three outstanding early-career professionals from around the world as they discuss what inspires them to build careers in energy, how new technologies and collaboration platforms are reshaping the way they work, and why the aspirations of the next generation are redefining the future of our profession.

Moderated by Jennifer Miskimins, SPE President and Professor & Department Head at Colorado School of Mines

Speakers:

• Hitisha Dadlani, Senior Reservoir Engineer at ONGC, India
• Haoming Ma, Research Scientist at University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources
• Charalampos (Harry) Soilemezidis, Systems Engineer at CLS Engineering & Energy, Germany

Get more from ATCE 2026 with a strategic plan for learning, networking, technology scouting, and career growth. Susan Howes shares how to maximize the value of SPE's premier annual event.

Hydraulic fracturing revolutionized unconventional oil and gas — and the same stimulation science is now being adapted to unlock next-generation geothermal energy. Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) and Superhot Rock (SHR) concepts borrow heavily from decades of shale completions know-how, but operating at temperatures exceeding 300°C, in crystalline basement rock, introduces entirely new engineering challenges: engineering a reservoir volume, proppant and fluid stability, wellbore integrity, reservoir management under extreme thermal and mechanical stress and more that we will find out through time.

In this SPE Live, we will dive into the synergistic approach of subsurface engineering and hydraulic fracturing from the oil and gas world into the geothermal realm. The conversation will explore where oilfield technology has direct transfer capabilities, where it must be reinvented, and what this convergence really means for the future of dispatchable geothermal power.

Moderated by: Steve Schubarth, Chair SPE’s Hydraulic Fracturing Technical Section

Speaker: Gabrijel Grubac, Principal Completions Engineer at Mazama Energy

The Reserves Education Subcommittee (RES) within the Oil and Gas Reserves Committee (OGRC) is a global group of subject-matter experts advancing PRMS education. The RES were recently mandated by the OGRC to update, design, and prepare a reserves education framework in modular presentations. The initiative resulted in the development of thirteen (13) modular presentations encompassing core PRMS principles, reserves classification, maturity distinctions, evaluation methodologies, commerciality/economic criteria, and common areas of misinterpretation observed in industry. The modules form the “PRMS Training Master Slides” and are to be taught by OGRC approved instructors and offer a practical and interactive approach as a third trilateral source on PRMS knowledge and education supported by OGRC.

The “PRMS Training Master Slides” are standardized, committee-endorsed training for global dissemination across operators, consultants, educators, and regulators. It is anticipated they will perpetually improve global alignment on reserves estimation and classification, provide a clearer differentiation between resources and reserves, and finally a more consistent understanding of commercial maturity thresholds. These modular presentations will complement the much-needed training gap identified by OGRC.

Moderated by Doug Peck, Head of Reserves at Woodside
Speaker: Syed Hasan, Chair OGRC Reserves Education Subcommittee

September 2026

The Middle East is rapidly emerging as a key region for large-scale deployment of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), driven by industrial decarbonization needs, favorable geology, and ambitious national energy transition strategies. As projects evolve from early pilots to commercial developments, the focus is shifting toward building integrated CCUS hubs that connect multiple emitters to shared transport and storage infrastructure. These hub-based models introduce new technical, operational, and commercial challenges that require alignment across subsurface characterization, infrastructure design, and long-term storage assurance.
This session will explore how CCUS initiatives in the MENA region are progressing toward scalable and bankable solutions, with a focus on the technical enablers required to move from concept to execution. The discussion will highlight lessons learned in hub development, including storage site selection, pressure management, system integration, and risk mitigation. Speakers will also share perspectives on how multidisciplinary engineering, subsurface expertise, and collaboration across stakeholders are shaping the next phase of CCUS deployment—providing insights relevant to both regional and global audiences.

Moderated by: Christian Winterfield, Lead Petroleum Engineer CCS at Aramco

Speakers:

• Bilal Sheikh: CCUS Business Development Senior Specialist at ADNOC
• Hooman Haghighi: Senior Director – Energy Solutions and Decarbonisation at Wood

This SPE Live session will provide an update on recent developments in OSDU and discuss why data remains critical in the age of AI. As AI use grows, the quality, structure, context, and accessibility of data become even more important. The session will highlight how OSDU is helping advance more consistent and interoperable data practices across the energy industry, while also acknowledging the practical challenges of adoption, standardization, and implementation. It will also touch on how SPE and OSDU can work together to inform members and support broader industry learning around data, digitalization, and AI.

Moderated by: Pushpesh Sharma, Director of Product Management at Emerson Electric (AspenTech)

Speakers: Kadri Umay: Senior Director & Microsoft Azure Data Manager(Energy Team) at Microsoft

In her final podcast as SPE President, Jennifer Miskimins reflects on a year of service, celebrates the people behind SPE’s success, shares updates on the Society’s future, and encourages members to remain engaged in advancing the profession and the energy industry.

This SPE Live explores the intersection of HSES and Reservoir, two disciplines that increasingly shape the future of responsible and high performance subsurface operations. Our goal is to understand how these areas can jointly reduce uncertainty, improve performance, and support responsible development across the asset lifecycle.

Moderated by Trey Shaffer, 2014-2017 SPE HSE Technical Director. Vice President, Key Clients at Resource Environmental Solutions LLC

Speakers:
• Dr. Linda Battalora, SPE HSES Technical Director. Teaching Professor in the Petroleum Engineering Department at Colorado School of Mines
• Dr. Rahim Masoudi, SPE Reservoir Technical Director. Chief Technical Lead at EnQuest/Veri Energy

This SPE Live brings together the SPE Drilling and SPE Completions Technical Directors for a forward-looking discussion on how the profession is evolving to meet increasing technical complexity, cost pressures, and expectations for safer and more sustainable operations. The session will explore how advances in drilling and completions technologies—alongside digitalization, automation, and data-driven workflows—are reshaping well construction and delivery across conventional, unconventional, and emerging energy applications.

Beyond technology, the discussion will emphasize the people and leadership dimensions of technical excellence. The Technical Directors will share perspectives on cross-discipline integration, workforce capability development, and SPE’s role in fostering collaboration, knowledge transfer, and professional growth.

Attendees can expect insights on how the drilling and completions communities can work more effectively together to deliver value today while preparing the profession for the energy systems of tomorrow.

Moderated by Robin Macmillan, 2022-2025 SPE Drilling Technical Director. Consultant.

Speakers:
• Peggy Rijken, SPE Completions Technical Director. Chapter Manager, Geomechanics Technology Center at Chevron
• Sarah Kern, SPE Drilling Technical Director. Director of Strategic Engagement at EIC Rose Rock

This month’s column shares practical ideas gathered from professional sections and student chapters worldwide, including fresh approaches to communication and meeting formats as well as creative ways of building community and recognition. These real‑world examples highlight the diversity of SPE and offer plenty of “food for thought” for leaders looking to strengthen engagement and deliver more value to their members.

Production operations are evolving rapidly—from traditional SCADA monitoring to AI-enabled intelligence. In this SPE Live, the SPE DSEA Technical Director and the SPE Production and Facilities Technical Director explore how advances in data infrastructure, analytics, and machine learning are transforming operational decision-making, improving efficiency, safety and shaping the future of intelligent production systems.

Moderated by Silviu Livescu, 2020-2023 SPE DSEA Technical Director. Co-Founder and CTO at Bedrock Energy

Speakers:
• Sushma Bhan, SPE DSEA Technical Director. Former Shell CDO of Subsurface/Wells
• Greg Stephenson, SPE Production and Facilities Technical Director. Chief Production Engineer at Occidental Oil & Gas Co. (Oxy)

Production data is often treated as a direct measurement, but in practice, it results from a chain of transformations linking reservoir conditions to reported flow rates. Fluid properties defined by pressure, temperature, and composition govern phase behavior and physical characteristics such as density and compressibility. These properties directly influence how flow measurement technologies respond under operating conditions, regardless of measurement principle. The same fluid description is then used to translate measured quantities into engineering outputs such as phase rates, allocation, and well performance. As a result, any inaccuracy or inconsistency in fluid properties propagates through both measurement interpretation and reservoir analysis. As production conditions evolve, changes in fluid behavior can simultaneously affect measurement response and reservoir conclusions, even when the measurement system itself remains unchanged.

This panel will examine the chain from reservoir conditions to reported production data, focusing on how fluid properties influence each step and how inconsistencies propagate into engineering decisions. The objective is to clarify the sources of uncertainty and how to better align measurement and reservoir workflows in practice.

Moderated by: Lester Yi, Lead Instrumentation, Control, and Electrical (IC&E) Engineer at ExxonMobil

Speakers:

• Muhammad Navaid Khan: Senior Specialist in Reservoir Engineering ad ADNOC
• Amin Amin: Chief Operating Officer at Belsim Engineering

This month's podcast features an update on SPE’s path to financial sustainability: stronger revenues, new partnerships, and emerging opportunities—from geothermal initiatives to AI-driven licensing—are improving the outlook. While challenges remain, recent progress highlights a more resilient Society and a forward-looking strategy focused on long-term member value.

Join us for this SPE Live hosted by SPE’s Education and Accreditation Committee where our panelists will discuss how Petroleum Engineering (PE) education changes have been driven by technological innovations and the evolving energy landscape. We will examine how PE programs are integrating new topics while continuing to value traditional engineering skills. The session will showcase changes to educational curricula that address critical themes such as energy growth, AI advancements, and industry evolution. Please join this discussion on how PE education is shaping the future of geo-energy skills, and more importantly, explore how industry practitioners could be engaged in this process.

Moderated by Juliana Leung, SPE EAC Chair. Professor, Canada Research Chair in Data Analytics in Subsurface Flow Systems at University of Alberta Speakers:

• Siyavash Motealleh, Principal Reservoir Engineer at BP AGT
• Peyman Pourafshary, P.E. Professor & Vice Dean of Research and Academic Affairs, School of Mining and Geosciences, Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan
• Marshall Watson, Chair of Texas Tech Bob L. Herd Dept. of Petroleum Engineering, Texas Tech University

As global demand for clean, reliable energy grows, geothermal is emerging as a uniquely capable resource for delivering both firm, low carbon electricity and consistent, long term thermal output. In recent years, the geothermal startup sector has also benefited from a significant increase in investment from both established energy companies and new entrants, strengthening technology development and accelerating field deployment. Advances in drilling, subsurface imaging, enhanced geothermal systems (EGS), closed loop designs, next generation heat exchange architectures, and broader technology innovations across the subsurface sector are expanding access to resources in regions previously considered uneconomic or inaccessible. These developments are redefining geothermal’s role across the energy system-supporting industrial heat demands, commercial thermal loads, district heating networks, and dependable baseload power.
This SPE Live session brings together leaders in technology innovation, project development, and stakeholder engagement, featuring the COO and Co Founder of Gradient Geothermal, a Technology Specialist from Underground Ventures (UGV), and the Director of Stakeholder Engagement at XGS Energy.

The panel will examine why geothermal heat and power are gaining momentum now, the technical advancements across EGS, closed loop systems, and general subsurface technologies driving that progress, and the practical considerations that shape real world project deployment. Attendees will gain a clear, balanced understanding of geothermal’s capabilities today, the challenges that remain, and the opportunities ahead for scaling both thermal and electric applications.

Moderated by: Katerina Yared, Global Energy Portfolio Lead at 3M Oil & Gas, Carbon Capture, Geothermal

Speakers:

• Caity Smith, Director of Stakeholder Engagement at XGS Energy
• Soraya Bornaz, Technology Specialist at Underground Ventures
• Johanna Ostrum, COO/Co-Founder at Gradient Geothermal

This month’s podcast highlights how artificial intelligence is influencing SPE programming, publications, and new tools, while also transforming day‑to‑day operations across our industry. The column explores energy supply implications and practical field applications, showing how SPE is helping members turn AI into a tool for progress.

The hydrogen sector is expanding across production, storage, transport, and end-use applications. This SPE Live session will examine the technical competencies and multidisciplinary skills required to succeed in this growing field. Young professionals will share their perspectives on industry expectations, emerging job roles, research trends, and how early-career engineers can strategically position themselves for long-term career growth in hydrogen-related projects.

Moderated by: Sonia Lopez Kovacs, Reserves Audit Leader at Repsol Spain Speakers:
Cindy Dianita: Assistant Professor at University of Indonesia
Amine Ifticene: Production Engineer at OXY Sarah Wheeler: Research Engineer at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI)