When AAPG first held an international conference in Rio de Janeiro, the resulting meeting was loudly proclaimed by just about everyone as “the best ever.”
Indeed, that 1998 meeting was the Association’s largest international conference to date – it remains AAPG’s second-largest such event – and many believe Brazil’s exploration potential and the meeting’s technical content were big reasons for the success.
A tough bar to top, you might think.
Think again, says one of the meeting’s organizers and most passionate supporters.
“This will be – again – the best-ever international meeting of AAPG,” said Marcio Mello, vice chair of the International Conference and Exhibition, set Nov. 15-18 in Rio.
“Brazil is the country that today presents the highest hydrocarbon potential in the whole world,” Mello said. “This will be discussed in front of the whole international petroleum community.”
Brazil’s recent exploration successes (see [PFItemLinkShortcode|id:733|type:standard|anchorText:related story|cssClass:|title:Brazil Dancing the ‘Pre-Salt Salsa’|PFItemLinkShortcode]) are well-documented and known not just by the industry but by people in all parts of the energy-needing world. Whereas the 1998 meeting was flavored with the country’s potential, the 2009 version will have the perspective of accomplishment.
“Brazil is becoming one of the most promising oil producers in the whole world,” Mello said. “The Rio 2009 meeting will allow the widespread of the pre-salt potential for the whole international petroleum community, as well as for Latin America academic and industry groups.
“The Brazilian petroleum industry is much more mature and developed,” Mello continued. “Also, there is a strong Brazilian industry that will participate very actively in the meeting.”
And that means a good chance to dive deeper in Brazil’s pre-salt petroleum geology – a hot topic for geoscientists throughout the world.
“The model will be discussed in detail,” Mello said.
Broader, Further, Deeper
There are other reasons why Rio may become one of AAPG’s more memorable meetings.
The technical program is built on the theme “Broader, Further, Deeper,” with the Associaçao Brasileira de Geólogos de Petróleo serving as the host society, and Haroldo Lima, director general of Brazil’s ANP (National Petroleum Agency) the general chair.
Organizers have prepared a program that includes more than 300 oral and poster presentations, 13 short courses and core workshops, and four field trips.
Appropriately, the conference will focus largely on offshore activities while also including sessions that cover upstream areas.
The conference also offers two special sessions:
A plenary session on “Opportunities in a High-Stakes Environment.”
A panel of top industry executives will address different aspects of issues facing the industry. Speakers will include:
- Jose Sergio Gabrielli de Azevedo, chairman, Petrobras.
- Mark A. Albers, senior vice president, ExxonMobil Corp.
- Amin Nasser, senior vice president E&P, Saudi Aramco.
- Yves-Louis Darricarrere, president E&P, Total.
- Andrew Gould, chairman, Schlumberger.
A panel on “Giant Fields of the Decade – E&P Challenges.”
Industry experts will discuss recent giant field discoveries and the technological innovations that played a role in the success. Speakers will include:
- Solange Guedes, executive director, Petrobras.
- Pete Carragher, vice president-geoscience and exploration, BP Access and Exploration Unit.
- Yves Grosjean, vice president-exploration coordination and portfolio management, Total E&P.
- Paul Haryott, general manager of exploration, Chevron Africa and Latin America.
- Malcolm Brown, exploration manager, BG Brazil.