An
idea rooted in 1998 during an informal meeting with the vice chairman
of the AAPG International Liaison Committee led to the creation of the
Association of Petroleum Geologists (APG-India) in February 2000.
APG was formally
inaugurated last Oct. 25 by Subir Raha, chairman and managing director,
ONGC, and S.N. Talukdar, doyen of Indian petroleum geology. Y.B. Sinha,
ONGC director of exploration, presided over the function as an APG patron.
After formation
of an ad-hoc body and registration of the association, an aggressive
membership drive resulted in about 500 members from among various petroleum
companies, academia and students.
APG's first
governing body was unanimously elected on Jan. 5. It consists of:
- Patron — Y.B. Sinha.
- President — D. Ray.
- Vice President — N.K.
Lal.
- Vice President — D.P.
Sahasrabudhe.
- Secretary — James Peters.
- Jt Secretary — Ravi
Misra.
- Treasurer — Surinder
Uppal.
These elected
officers are joined by five members to form the APG Executive Committee:
SGK Mohan; Puneet Suri; Sushil Chandra; Manish Shukla; and Harshwardhan.
In addition,
S.N. Swamy holds the position of APG Editor.
The APG was
registered on May 19, and is affiliated to AAPG. The association will
provide an opportunity for geologists to share their experiences, ideas
and thoughts and create an environment that will benefit the oil industry
especially in the field of exploration and production of hydrocarbons.
The organization's
objectives are:
- Advancement of the science
of geology especially as it relates to petroleum, natural gas, other
subsurface fluids and mineral resources.
- Promotion of technology
in exploration for finding and producing these materials in economically
and environmentally sound manners.
- Fostering the spirits
of scientific research through its members.
APG's first
conference, "Strategic Challenges and Paradigm Shift in Hydrocarbon
Exploration with Special Reference to Frontier Basins," will be held
Sept. 27-29 at Mussoorie, a hill station in the Himalayan ranges.
Indian hydrocarbon
exploration is being carried out in Cenozoic, Mesozoic, Gondwana, Paleozoic,
Proterozoic and deepwater basins.
Speaking will
be experts from industry and academia, and the theme will center on
technologies and ideas pertaining to the disciplines of:
- Structure and tectonics.
- Sedimentation models.
- Basin analysis.
- Biostratigraphy.
- Energy resources (petroleum,
CBM, gas hydrates and geothermal).
Two pre-conference
short courses are being planned: "Sequence Stratigraphy," led by Bilal
Haq, and "Evaluating Seals, Reservoirs and Hydrocarbon Pays," led by
John Kaldi.
The extended
abstract deadline for accepted papers is July 31.
Additional
information is available by visiting the home page at http://www.apgindia.org.