EAGE NEWSLETTER

Issue 1 2015STUDENTS

Win a prize with the correct answer!Who will kick off with an inspirational talk

during the Student Chapter Meeting on

4 June in Madrid?

Send your answer to students@eage.org and

receive one of of our selected books for free!

What's insideRole for students in Uganda 3

Life as a geoscience blogger 7

Chapters in Russia 9and Turkey

Industry News 10

And more...

Peter Lloyd, co-chair, EAGE Student Af-

fairs Committee, reports on the EAGE

student programmes at the ASEG/

PESA 24th International Geophysical Confer-

ence and Exhibition in Perth, Western Aus-

tralia, and the lead up to Madrid 2015.

We came, we quizzed, we partnered! Maybe

not quite as dramatic as Caesar’s words after his

Pontic triumphs, but EAGE’s fi rst foray into Aus-

tralasia nevertheless felt as if it had been planned

with almost military precision. Though instead of

taking prisoners, we made friends.

ASEG and PESA put on one of the best confer-

ences in Perth that I have ever attended anywhere,

in terms of the quality of the technical sessions

and the level of engagement in the exhibition

hall. It was a privilege for EAGE to be involved and

to contribute as part of the conference’s student

outreach programme, which also included men-

toring, mock interviews and career talks.

Read more on page 2 ➤

Read more on page 2 ➤

Madrid 2015 Student Programme is made for you!

The University of Western Australia won the

honours at the EAGE Geo-Quiz night facilitated

by our EAGE Asia Pacifi c Offi ce team, headquar-

tered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Twenty teams,

from 10 universities across the continent, faced

off under the ‘Southern Cross’ for a wonderful

open-air evening event. The victors were decided

on the very last question, winning by a margin of

just two points from a possible 1000. Nail-biting

stuff! The winning WA team will now head to

Madrid for the Annual Conference in June and

compete against previous Geo-Quiz champions

like Imperial College, Heriot Watt University and

Institut Francais du Petrol (IFP). As winners, their

travel, accommodation and conference fees

will be sponsored by the EAGE. Special thanks

to Adrian Noetzli and his Perth committee for

helping compose 50 excellent questions, and

encouraging so many strong university teams to

compete.

And that was not all we had to celebrate. We

welcome Aaron Girard as our new Australasian

representative on the Student Affairs Commit-

tee, and Dr Gaynor Paton has kindly agreed to

be our new student lecturer for the 2015-2016

tours of Australasia and the Far East.

With EAGE student representation and pro-

grammes in the America’s, Europe, the Middle

East, Africa, Russia, India, China, the Far East

and now Australasia, we might be tempted to

say that the SAC has now joined that elite group

‘upon whom the sun never sets’. I have to con-

fess that I thought this was a Churchillian saying

about the Brits in the late 1800s, but the basic

idea appears to have come from Herodotus’ His-

tories, Xerxes and the Persian invasion of Europe

in 480 BC (Georg Buechmann, 1864). So let’s

not get too carried away, and be reminded that

pride goes before the fall (as it certainly did with

By June, the academic year will be wind-

ing down for students. But before the

summer break, don’t forget to attend

the Student Programme at the EAGE Annual

Conference on 1-4 June in Madrid. This will

provide a perfect opportunity to network and

expand your geoscience horizons.

The technical programme consists of stu-

dent poster presentations, a fi eld trip on

Monday exploring the Spanish Central Sys-

tem, motivational speeches on Tuesday and

Thursday and a series of short courses on

Tuesday and Wednesday.

Over the years, the student short courses

and workshops have become an integral

part of the Student Programme. For the 77th

EAGE Conference and Exhibition in Madrid,

we will continue this tradition with the orga-

nization of three student short courses, on

Tuesday 2 June and Wednesday 3 June.

On Tuesday, students can participate in

the courses on ‘Tectonics-Sedimentation

Relations’ presented by Josep Poblet (Univer-

sidad de Oviedo) and ‘Potential Fields Meth-

ods for Hydrocarbon Exploration’ presented

Hon Prof Peter Lloyd.

Refl ections on our Australian debut

EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 20152

EAGE UPDATE

The essays were of excellent quality and

touched on a broad range of pertinent issues.

Ideas ranged from introducing a hippocratic

oath to be sworn on entering our profession, to

having measurable standards of competence, to

simpler things like dressing neatly in the offi ce

and being respectful to one’s co-workers. Case

studies were delved into and one team conjured

up a mythical character to reinforce the prin-

ciples of ethics and professionalism. References

were made to several recent disasters which

might (indeed, almost certainly would) have

been avoided had the players adopted a more

professional approach when interacting, com-

municating and making decisions. We, the judg-

Madrid 2015 Student Programme is made for you!

EAGE Student Newsletter

Student Affairs CommitteePeter Lloyd chairSylvie Grimaud Co-chair (Total)Anne Jardin (IFP Energies Nouvelles)Giancarlo Bernasconi (Politecnico di Milano)Ibrahim Mohammad (Schlumberger)Leon Barens (Total E&P Nederland)Roger Clark (University of Leeds)Claudia Steiner-Luckabauer (HOT Engineering GmbH)Vladislav Kuznetov (Novatek NTC)Mario Sigismondi (YPF Argentina)

Publications & Communications ManagerMarcel van Loon (ml@eage.org)

Student Affairs CoordinatorKirsten Brandt (kbt@eage.org)

Publications CoordinatorLaura van Kal (lkl@eage.org)

Account Manager AdvertisingPeter Leitner (plr@eage.org)

ProductionCo Productions bv (contact@coproductions.nl)

EAGE Head Offi ceE-mail: eage@eage.org, students@eage.orgWebsite: www.eage.org

Continued from p.1.

Refl ections on our Australian debut

Xerxes at Thermopylae and the Battle of Salamis

shortly thereafter).

I’d also like to report that we have selected

our six fi nalists for the EAGE FIELD Challenge,

another fl ag ship initiative for students with the

fi nals also at the Annual Conference in Madrid.

We had a record number of 47 entries from all

around the world, for this year’s essay ’Profes-

sionalism: what it means and why it is critical to

the oil and gas business’. And I am delighted to

say that only a handful failed the ‘plagiarism’

screening we always conduct.

The line up for the fi nals will be:

• China University of Petroleum (Beijing)

• University of Barcelona (Spain)

• Dalhousie University (Canada)

• OMSK State Technical University (Russia)

• Heriot-Watt University (Dubai)

• AGH University of Science and Technology

(Poland)

The regional spread for the fi nal line-up was not

‘engineered’, it refl ects the quality of entries we

had from around the world.

es, were very impressed with what we read, but

(as always happens in life) there is always that

nagging concern. Will we all be tough enough

to ‘walk the talk’ when things become diffi cult.

And that brings me back to Perth. Despite the

oil price, company restructuring, cost controls

and inevitably so many fearful for their jobs, the

professional attitude was simply superb. Every-

one I talked to had a positive attitude, putting

on a bright face and the technical presentations

were excellent. The grittiness and determination

for which Australians have become renowned

shone through with real dignity. And one saw it

in the more recent arrivals working in the busi-

ness. It is indeed infectious. Thanks again ASEG/

PESA for this wonderful conference and inviting

EAGE to become part of the professional scene

in Australasia.

Continued from p.1.

by Adriana Mantilla-Pimiento and Lorenzo

Cascone, both from Repsol. On Wednesday

afternoon the course by Marcos Gallego

(ERM) course on ‘Environmental Impact and

Exploration’ will conclude this year’s series of

student short courses.

The courses during the Annual are not

your average academic seminar. The inter-

national nature of the conference and ex-

hibition itself, as well as the instructors on

offer, allow students to engage on topics in

a variety of fi elds whilst working together

with peers from all over the world. This cre-

ates a special environment in which you can

share your own expertise and local knowl-

edge with that of your co-workers whilst

collaborating on group exercises. By doing

so, you will not only learn other approaches

to existing problems, but also gain an un-

derstanding on different ways of reasoning.

One of the course presenters Adriana

Mantilla-Pimiento explains the rationale:

‘These kind of short courses are perfectly

designed to introduce students to the real

professional world and expose them to the

most innovative technologies and methods

used in the industry. In addition, they are

an excellent opportunity for the students

to start building a professional network.

Students should be involved in the EAGE

Madrid ´15 Student Programme because it

is a very good opportunity to get in touch

for the fi rst time with the industry and the career

interests of companies through a very friendly

and attractive programme, in which they may

feel comfortable. There is a team specifi cally

preparing different activities to make the EAGE

Madrid 2015 Student Programme, a motivating

and inspiring experience that could help stu-

dents to set their goals.’

Although the technical programme is obvious-

ly the essence of the Student Programme, the

Student Evening on Tuesday 2 June is not to be

forgotten either! The reoccurring Recruitment

Café will also be at the Student Court this year,

providing students with an excellent chance to

meet the representatives of our sponsors: Total,

Repsol, Statoil, ExxonMobil, and the EAGE Stu-

dent Fund (including Shell). If you want to attend

one or several of the short courses or one of the

other Student Programme highlights, make sure

you take a look at the website (www.eage.org/

event/madrid-students-2015), and don’t forget

to register for the conference! We are looking

forward to welcoming you to Madrid this June.

Students on a tour of EAGE exhibition area.

EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015 3

STUDENT CHAPTERS

Students discuss their potential role in Uganda’s developing oil and gas sector

The fi rst EAGE-supported workshop on the role of young people in

Uganda’s oil sector was held last November at the College of Engi-

neering, Design, Art and Technology, Kampala, Uganda.

The workshop was part of a continuing dialogue with university students

by the Africa Institute for Energy Governanace (AFIEGO), a public policy re-

search and advocacy non-governmental organization (NGO) in Uganda. The

NGO is trying to ensure young people are at the forefront of the discourse in

the oil sector. The workshop aimed at creating awareness that only through

active youth participation will the dream of a better Uganda, with more

people gainfully employed, better schools, better health services, transport

and energy systems with improved quality of life, become a reality.

The workshop on ‘Creating effective nationwide youth demand for good

governance in Uganda’s oil sector’ was organized by the EAGE Student

Chapter of Makerere University (EAGE Mak SC), in partnership with Africa

Institute for Energy Governance (AFIEGO). It brought together university

students pursuing petroleum and geosciences courses, guild presidents

from major universities, student leaders of the Kigumba Petroleum Insti-

tute, heads of oil courses at various tertiary institutions, oil companies, gov-

ernment offi cials in the petroleum sector and civil society organisations.

Musasizi Josephat, founding president of EAGE Mak SC, encouraged stu-

dents on oil and gas and related courses to take the advantage of EAGE and

its networking possibilities for their career development, and to consider

working abroad.

Dickens Kamugisha, CEO of AFIEGO, said the workshop was an im-

portant step towards ensuring active youth participation and demand for

transparency and accountability in the management and utilization of oil

revenues. It could also help infl uence the ongoing process of developing a

local content policy for the oil and gas sector in Uganda.

He encouraged his audience to be focused on the human rights and ac-

countability problems in Uganda’s oil sector where over $1 billion so far

collected in Capital Gains Tax (CGT) and signature bonuses have never been

accounted for.

Michael Mawanda, MP, vice chairperson, Uganda Parliamentary Forum

on Oil and Gas, said local content meant ‘building a workforce that is skilled

or creating small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) and offering products

and services locally’. He acknowledged the contribution of some of the oil

companies in helping youth acquire expertise in the oil fi eld. However, he

cautioned young people not to look only at the direct jobs but consider

ancillary work.

Peter Magelah, a researcher on law, human rights and governance in the

oil and gas sector, identifi ed the country’s unemployment problem and ad-

vised attention to be paid to local content policy. He also called for increased

funding for Kigumba Petroleum Institute to facilitate quality education that

can enable locals to compete for the oil jobs.

Didas Muhumuza from Tullow Oil told participants how over 20 young

men and women receive scholarships to study Master’s courses in oil and

gas related programmes, which he cited as a major contribution to the local

content policy.

Fred Onduri, a commissioner for youth in the Ministry of Gender Labour

and Social Development addressed climate change issues. With oil produc-

tion underway, there was a need for youth to ensure an environmentally

friendly oil industry.

Left-right: Kamugisha Dickens (CEO, AFIEGO), Musasizi Josephat (EAGE SC Makerere University president), Tiberindwa John Vianney (head of department, Makerere

University Department of Geology and Petroleum Studies), Mawanda Michael, MP, Onduri Fred (Commissioner for Youth and Children Affairs, Ministry of Gender,

Gabor and Social Development), Peter Magelah (research officer, Advocate Coalition for Development and Environment).

Onduri Fred handing over a gift from EAGE Mak SC to Dr Tiberindwa John

Vianney of Makerere University.

Dickens Kamugisha, CEO of AFIEGO, opening the workshop at Makerere

University.

EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 20154

EAGE UPDATE

Clash of brain titans at EAGE Geo-Quiz in Perth

Who would be savvy enough to win an

all expenses-paid trip to EAGE’s An-

nual Event in Madrid? That’s what we

wanted to fi nd out at the EAGE Geo-Quiz for the

Asia Pacifi c region, held during the ASEG-PESA

24th International Geophysical Conference and

Exhibition in Perth, Western Australia, held from

15-18 February.

Some 60 student warriors turned out, all de-

termined to harness their brain power and fi nger

refl exes to win the coveted honour of represent-

ing Australia in the Global EAGE Geo-Quiz at

the Annual Meeting in June. This exciting com-

petition, headed by Peter Lloyd, chairman of the

EAGE Student Affairs Committee and charismat-

ic quizmaster, succeeded in rousing the warrior

spirit of the teams.

After a tough battle decided by a last buzzer-

beating question, the team from University of

Western Australia were declared the winners. The

team of Lee Tasker, Benjamin Witten and Aaron

Girard (University of Western Australia) took home

the special travel grants sponsored by EAGE to at-

tend the 77th EAGE Conference & Exhibition in Ma-

drid. Special thanks goes to Adrian Noetzli, geo-

physicist for GPX Surveys and local volunteers from

ASEG for their invaluable support. The venue and

student social events were sponsored by ASEG.

Lee: Everything you’ve ever done in earth

science can be applicable to the domain. Even if

you are not a geologist or a hydrocarbon person,

it doesn’t matter. Just believe in yourself and ev-

erything will work out for this quiz.

Do you think you stand a chance to win

the Global Geo-Quiz in Spain?

Lee: We have come this far. Why not?

Aaron: I think it’s a great opportunity to repre-

sent Australia. I think we will do equally as well

if we prepare in advance. My motto is ‘just relax

and think as little as possible’.

Ben: We will represent UWA and Australia well.

We feel like we are the best team and we are

going to Madrid to win it all.

Young Scientist Prize on offer at SES conference

There is a prize waiting to be won by a young scientist in con-

nection with the Third Sustainable Earth Science Conference &

Exhibition (SES 2015), which takes place from 15-18 October in

Celle, Germany.

This special event is being organized by EAGE in cooperation with

CO2GeoNet and ENERG. Building on the success of the fi rst SES confer-

ence in Valencia, Spain (2011) and the second SES conference in Pau,

France (2013), the conference aims to create a platform for geoscien-

tists to meet, learn and discuss ‘Use of the Sub-surface to serve the

Energy Transition’. To meet the challenges of energy transition, the view

is that the geosciences must play an increasingly important role in the

sustainable use of the Earth and its resources, and in the conservation

of our environment.

In order to stimulate the work done by the future leaders in this fi eld,

EAGE is hosting a special competition in which we will present the Young

Scientists Prize to the best paper presented by a young professional.

EAGE wants to continue encouraging further innovation in sustain-

able earth sciences. A prize of €1000 will be awarded to one young

scientist who submits and presents a paper at the next Sustainable

Earth Sciences Conference (SES 2015).

EAGE invites young professionals to submit papers on the the topic

‘Innovation in Sustainable Earth Sciences’ for the Young Scientist com-

petition. To be eligible for the prize the lead author must be a full-

time student or young professional and under the age of 35 (by the

end of the calendar year of the conference). Submit your paper before

15 March 2015!

The subject matter of the nominated oral or poster submission should

include an innovative approach to sustainable use of Earth resources

within any of the conference topics (e.g. CO2 storage, geothermal ener-

gy, deep-Earth storage, or other related topics). Papers on relevant break-

through technology or research not clearly defi ned in the call for papers

are also welcome. The winner will be announced during SES 2015.

Students can attend SES 2015 at a discount! If you have any ques-

tions, please contact us at ses@eage.org.

After the competition we asked the winners

about their ‘quiz battle’ experiences.

How did you form such a great winning

team together?

Aaron: We worked in the same group together

and we are actually representing the UWA stu-

dent chapter together.

How did you prepare and train for

the Geo-Quiz?

Ben: The training is basically a lifetime of train-

ing. Geoscience classes and studying geophysics

were the key, but we just tried to stay relaxed

and keep our minds limber.

Lee: Basically, we tried to get into a relaxed

mode and enjoy ourselves. That is exactly what

we did. Believe it or not, we turned up trumps!

What is your advice for future teams who

want to take part in the Geo-Quiz?

Benjamin: If you are interested in geoscience,

just come and participate. I think all the teams

enjoyed themselves.

Aaron: My advice for any future team is ‘you know

a lot more than you think you know’. There will

always be some questions you are going to know

and some questions you are going to learn from.

From left to right: Aaron Girard, Bejamin Witten

and Lee Tasker (University of Western Australia),

Professor Peter Lloyd and Adrian Noetzli.

5EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

INTERVIEW

Becoming a geoscientist: the journey so farChiara Aruffo is a PhD student at the Institute for

Applied Geosciences at Technische Universität

Darmstadt, soon to be looking for a full-time job

in the oil and gas industry. EAGE asked her about

her job hunting experiences and how she sees

the future.

Mini bio

Chiara has a Bachelor’s degree in geological

sciences and a Master’s degree in fi eld and re-

sources geology from Roma Tre University, Italy.

She was an Erasmus student during her Master

studies in exploration geophysics/structural geol-

ogy with geophysics at the University of Leeds.

Her work experience has included an internship

at the Operational Centre For Volcanic Hazards,

Italian Civil Protection, Rome; seismic interpreta-

tion with Bayfi eld Energy, UK; internship at the

Reservoir Geomechanics Centre of Excellence,

Bracknell UK (Schlumberger); and numerical

modelling of seismic sections for Petrobras at

Roma Tre University.

What is your current student/work

situation

I am about to conclude a three-year contract as

a PhD candidate at TU Darmstadt, waiting to de-

fend my thesis in the near future. I have been

working on a project about CO2 storage in coop-

eration with an Australian consortium.

Why did you choose the oil and gas

industry?

This derives mainly from the Erasmus exchange

I had at University of Leeds, where courses are

strongly focused on the oil and gas industry. I

was immediately attracted by the many appli-

cations of geology and the cutting edge tech-

niques for oil and gas exploration and produc-

tion. The real breakthrough was the internship

I did last year at Schlumberger, where I had the

opportunity to see how oil and gas professionals

work: it was impressive and now I am sure this is

the path I want to follow.

What is your particular geo expertise?

I hold a Masters in petroleum geology and my

PhD thesis is in reservoir geomechanics, a rela-

tively new topic for the oil and gas industry.

Otherwise I am interested in everything related

to numerical modelling, for example reservoir

engineering.

What is your career vision?

My vision is to become a technical leader in my

area of expertise, thus contributing to improv-

ing the production of natural resources in terms

of safety awareness and economic sustainability.

How hard do you think it will be to fi nd a

job in the current economic climate?

It is not easy at this particular time as companies

tend to hire experience people. Only a few grad-

uate programmes were launched this year and

some of these have been withdrawn, making it

that more challenging for a new graduate to fi nd

a job. Currently, more than ever, it is essential

not to give up, keep looking and try to stand out

from the crowd.

How do you go about job-seeking?

I use Linkedin quite intensively because most of

the companies advertise their openings there. I

also constantly monitor websites of companies

that do not use Linkedin for recruiting. Network-

ing is also fundamental: it allows you to have

direct insights into the companies and to have

fi rst-hand information about new positions.

Do you have many friends/colleagues also

looking for work?

I do have some friends actively looking for a job,

we share tips and support each other in our re-

search. It is a great help to have this opportunity,

we keep our motivation up!

Is there a back-up plan if things don’t pan

out as you hoped?

I am confi dent that this downtime for oil and

gas industry will be over soon, leading to a more

active job market. In the meantime, I want to fo-

cus on improving my skills. I recently decided to

learn how to code and I see it as an investment

for the future.

Have you been involved in any EAGE

student activities?

I participated in student activities during the

last two EAGE Conferences & Exhibitions in

London and Amsterdam. It is very fun and

also an outstanding opportunity to network

with both students and professionals. Thanks

to dedicated workshops, students can increase

their knowledge.

Are the EAGE recruitment fair/job centre

and other recruitment initiatives at annual

meetings useful?

I particularly appreciate the opportunity to have

trial interviews with companies. It gives a good

indication about real interview expectations and

skills that companies are looking for. The job cen-

tre represents a useful source of information con-

cerning the recruitment activity of companies.

Is there more that the Association could do

for students?

EAGE is already doing a very good job for stu-

dents. I really appreciate the Recruitment Special

and it would be great to increase the number of

issues per year and to include opinions from new

graduate-level employees.

What would your advice be to a student

starting out on a geo degree/career?

I strongly believe that hard work is the funda-

mental requirement to achieve success. I encour-

age every student to get involved in activities

proposed by associations such as EAGE, build a

solid network and always look for new learning

opportunities.

Chiara Aruffo.

EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 20156

EAGE UPDATE

Make sure you are at the Student Chapter meeting in Madrid

EAGE is proud of its rapidly growing num-

ber of Student Chapters. Did you know

that EAGE had 27 Student Chapters on a

global scale last year, and already this year we

are up to 43 either new and resubscribed Stu-

dent Chapters! We plan to celebrate this growth

of almost 60% during the 77th EAGE Conference

& Exhibition in Madrid from 1-4 June, where we

intend to give the stage to our Student Chapters.

On Thursday 4 June from 3-5.30 p.m., a Student

Chapter meeting will be held on the Exhibition

fl oor. It will kick off with an inspirational talk by

Jean Gérard (Repsol) about ‘The Role of Students

in Collaboration between Academia and Industry’.

Gérard intends to explain why such collaboration

is benefi cial to all geoscientists - academia, indus-

try personnel and students. In his professional life

Gérard is currently working as an advisor in clastic

sedimentology, sequence stratigraphy and seismic

stratigraphy for Repsol, providing expertise to all

the company’s exploration projects.

The EAGE Student Chapter Meeting will be

the perfect opportunity for Chapters, company

new Chapters ending up in the top three. We

are looking forward to an exciting competition

in which anything is possible!

And there’s more at the Annual Meeting …

EAGE provides Student Chapters with some

other exciting opportunities during the An-

nual Meeting. Each year, we organize the On-

line Geo-Quiz for Student Chapters only. The

three winning teams are given the opportunity

to send three of their Chapter members to the

EAGE Conference & Exhibition! EAGE would like

to congratulate the three winning Chapters of

this years’ Online Geo-Quiz: Dalhousie University

(Canada), Heriot-Watt University (UK) and SGS

Berlin & Potsdam (Germany)!

EAGE advises Chapters on how to organize

workshops, conferences or fi eld trips and even

provide them with technical content (lectures,

activities) if necessary. Leaders of tomorrow

need many more skills than only technical

knowledge learned during the study. Being

part of an EAGE Student Chapter helps in de-

veloping those other ‘soft’ skills.

professionals, Student Affairs Committee mem-

bers, EAGE staff, and other interested delegates

to mingle and network.

Another opportunity to promote activities

will be the Student Chapter Wall, in the Student

Court on the Exhibition fl oor. This is where you

can showcase what your chapter has done, what

the vision is and what activities are being plan-

ning for the future.

Best Student Chapter prize up for grabs

Who will receive the illustrious title of ‘Best Stu-

dent Chapter’, along with a €2000 voucher to

spend on Chapter activities? We will fi nd out

the answer during the EAGE Student Chapter

Meeting in Madrid when the winner will be an-

nounced.

Current holder of the title is Imperial College

London but they will be facing stiff opposition

to repeat, from among others last year’s run-

ners up, SGS Potsdam and Berlin and Bucharest

Universities, and also third-placed Heriot-Watt

and Suez Universities. Then again, we may see

EAGE Student Chapters around the world.

No EAGE Student Chapter at your university yet?Become a Student Chapter and receive

15 free memberships! Please send an

e-mail to the Student Affairs Coordi-

nator at students@eage.org to receive

more information about the benefi ts of

being a Student Chapter and how to

get started.

MADRID 2015MADRID 201577th EAGE Conference & Exhibition

Student Programme 1-4 June 2015EDUCATION - RECRUITMENT - NETWORKING - ENTERTAINMENT

7EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

INTERVIEW

Blogging his way through geoscience studiesJesper Dramsch is building a fan base for Way of

the Geophysicist, his regular blog (dramsch.net)

on his experience in the geoscience community

to date. Topics include discussion of science, as

well as some more philosophical and personal

thoughts. Jesper is a Master student at Hamburg

University currently with a student assignment at

O+P Geotechnik, Hamburg. His work experience

to date also includes internships with Fugro Seis-

mic Imaging and Schlumberger.

What inspired you to start a blog?

My initial idea was to share my internship ex-

perience with Fugro Seismic Imaging (FSI). Soon

this transitioned into writing about geo-related

topics I found interesting, especially, when I had

to work my way into and do the research; those

were articles I liked. Getting into the habit of

writing has helped me immensely in my studies.

Who is your target audience?

I write from the perspective of a grad student.

Essentially it’s a mix of people studying geosci-

ence, young professionals and seniors that are

interested in the views of those just starting into

the world of geoscience.

What kind of feedback to you get?

There’s a wide variety of feedback. In my com-

ment section and on Twitter I get some respons-

es. One of my articles has been published in a

book 52 things you should know about geo-

physics (Eds. Matt Hall and Evan Bianco, Agile

Geoscience). Some of my fellow students even

bought the book. At Schlumberger I got an

email from someone higher up in the company,

who struck up a conversation about my latest

post. All in all, I received very positive feedback.

Are there many other student/postgrad

geo-bloggers out there, or many in the

industry as a whole?

In my experience, there are quite a few geo-

bloggers. However, it appears to me that there

are exceptionally few student bloggers. Although

it serves as great exposition to new topics and a

wider audience, I often hear about a lack of con-

fi dence about publishing on the world wide web.

Have you had any comments from your

employers and work colleagues?

In fact there have been many comments from

fellow students about articles. As I mentioned

before, there was even an email conversation

about an article I published with a colleague.

Another nice moment was at an interview with

OMV, where we got into a conversation about

my article in a book and subsequently my blog.

What do your family and partner think

about the blog?

They’re happy I do something that I like. Gener-

ally, it’s a nice way for them to keep up with cur-

rent topics I work with and think about. I know

some of the more technologically inclined are

even following my blog.

What are your favourite contributions to

the blog so far?

I have written a piece on moss billboards to

fi lter dirt particles for my Facebook page ‘The

Earth Story’, which I also shared on my blog. Of

course, my more philosophical post ‘Is working

in O&G amoral?’ is high on the list, as it was

printed in a book.

Are there any disadvantages to maintain-

ing a blog, e.g. a lot of time?

It does take some dedication and time to write

a blog, but it’s less than one might think. Some-

thing that is much worse is the so-called ‘im-

poster syndrome’. Every time I hit ‘publish’ on

my blog, I wait for the huge outcry of knowl-

edgeable people to call me out for my blunders.

But fortunately, this has yet to happen. It’s also

a hobby at my own expense. There’s no money

in it for me. However, the desire to travel to the

amazing sites I write about grows with every

word I put out there.

How do you feel about being so open

about your life on the Internet?

I don’t feel that this blog is revealing too much.

It’s an awesome opportunity to connect with

interesting people and learn a whole lot about

Earth in the process. I’ve grown up in a digital

generation and was taught early on that you

should be careful what you put out on the in-

ternet.

Will you always keep a blog - is it an

addiction?!

At least I will try. I think I’m contributing to

something, a body of science communication

and if there’s just one person thinking ‘oh that’s

cool’, that counts as a victory. In a sense, yes,

it is a bit addicting, making me very happy but

without the nasty downsides.

Can you briefl y describe your schooling

and career so far?

I started very early. In school I took part in state-

wide science fairs, ranging in topics from ‘Why

do we take desert sand for hour glasses?’ to ‘Do

volcanic and seismologic activity correlate at Mt

Etna’. During graduation year I started taking

university classes in geophysics. I continued to

do a Bachelor of Science and then went on to

do my Master’s degree in geophysics. I stretched

the Master’s degree out to take two semesters of

additional courses in geology and organized two

internships in Oslo, Norway and London. Right

now I’m fi nishing my Master’s thesis in seismic

subsalt imaging.

What is your career vision?

I would love a challenging position that enables

me to continuously broaden my horizon and see

the world. I have worked in seismic interpolation

and would love to continue working in seismic

or gather more experience in interpretation in

the O&G sector.

Do you get involved in EAGE events, local

chapters, etc?

I held a poster presentation at the EAGE about

my Bachelor’s thesis and enjoyed the events

of the student chapter very much. During the

GAP, the international student geophysics event

in Germany hosting 150 or so people, we had

the EAGE as a sponsor. I was involved as a main

organizer and in rescuing the EAGE booth that

got lost in shipping! I also took part in the Geo-

Quiz but Krakow won. Apart from that I was

looking into the EAGE Geophysics Boot Camp

this year.

Jesper Dramsch.

8 EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

STUDENT CHAPTERS

Paris’ largest scientifi c university endorses student chapter initiative

Pierre and Marie Curie University (UPMC),

as Paris’ largest scientifi c university, gathers

a huge diversity of background, nationali-

ties and geoscience specialties, writes Mathieu Le

Breton, president of UPMC Geosciences new stu-

dent chapter.

The recently founded chapter helps us as stu-

dents to work together, strengthen networking,

and help to making decisions on future careers.

We run team projects around geosciences.

professionals and get industry insights. We are

also creating a sponsoring programme between

young professionals and fi nal-year students. Fi-

nally, since we are mostly Masters second year

students, it will be challenging to gather next

year’s team.

Christian Camerlynck, coordinator of the ap-

plied geophysics Masters programme, and offi cial

advisor of the student chapter, says that ‘learn-

ing to be a team player geophysicist is not just

developed in academic programmes, often too

focused on technical skill achievement. Extracur-

ricular activities such as the chapter are able to

fi ll a gap.’

Roger Guérin, head of Polytech Paris-UPMC

Earth Sciences Engineering department, says

‘UPMC geosciences Masters gives students geo-

scientifi c knowledge, while the student chapter

improves their geoscientifi c skills, such as building

projects in teams or increasing their network. This

combination of skills and knowledge gives them

the needed know-how to work in geosciences’.

Students start Malaysian university chapter

A grand opening of the recently established student chapter at

PETRONAS University of Technology (UTP) was held recently

in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, offi ciated by EAGE Asia Pacifi c re-

gional manager, Gerard Wieggerink.

Around 20 undergraduate students founded the chapter, currently

led by Lee Ming Xiang with the help of other students who have taken

up different roles in the chapter organization. The chapter is being

advised by two geoscience lecturers, Abdul Halim and Siti Nur Fathiyah

Jamaludin.

The vision of the student body is to promote the development and

application of geosciences and related engineering subjects, particu-

larly in UTP’s Geoscience Faculty. The UTP chapter intends to expose

students to the geoscience world and increase their understanding

of the geoscience discipline, its application in oil and gas industry as

well as the current status of research and development in this area. It

also wants to promote innovation and technical progress and to foster

communication, fellowship and cooperation between UTP geoscience

students and industry.

In the near future, there is a plan to organize a few activities to help

better understanding of geoscience and EAGE as a whole. One plan

is to organize a fi eld trip to some limestone sites around Malaysia for

greater understanding in carbonates rock. On top of that, there will be

talks as well as an exhibition covering geology, geophysics and petro-

leum geoscience in the second half of the year.

PETRONAS University of Technology (UTP) is a Malaysian private uni-

versity established in 1997. It provides opportunities for the pursuit of

knowledge and expertise for the advancement of engineering, science

and technology to enhance the nation’s competitiveness.

The EAGE-UTP-SC committee members during a meeting.

First conference about geoscience careers. Speaker (standing right) is Brice Lecampion, Schlumberger.

EAGE was the motivator for submitting a FIELD

Challenge essay and two abstracts on university

research-related acquisition and interpretation

projects. In addition, professionals from CGG,

Schlumberger, GDF Suez and IFP School kindly

agreed to give talks about their jobs. Students

love these professional presentations.

Later this year we will organize more pro-

fessional talks as well as join the Madrid EAGE

Annual Meeting to present our projects, meet

9EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

STUDENT CHAPTERS

Youth Petroleum Club (YPC) is the latest project by Gubkin Uni-

versity EAGE Student Chapter and the Russian Association of

Students of the Fuel and Energy Complex (RASTEK).

Youth Petroleum Club is a scientifi c-practical club, which deals with

the development of skills and insight into issues in the petroleum in-

dustries through the solving of real problems. The project is designed

A student conference in Russia proved

to be the inspiration for the setting up

of the fi rst EAGE Student Chapter in

Turkey. Members of the newly formed Istanbul

Technical University EAGE Student Chapter (ITU

EAGE) say that under the ITU’s umbrella, they

had been seeking collaboration between differ-

ent departments to create a sense of community

amongst undergraduate and graduate students

interested in the geosciences.

When they met with students from other

countries at the international meeting in Russia,

the solution to their problem came to mind. It

was the idea to form an EAGE Student Chapter.

Since January the Chapter has been in operation

to promote the earth sciences at ITU, with Ayse

Kaslilar, an assistant professor in the Geophysical

Engineering Department, acting as advisor to the

Chapter.

This is what the students say about the devel-

opment: ‘We encouraged people to be a part of

our ITU-EAGE Student Chapter by informing them

about the advantages of EAGE membership, such

as sponsored membership, travel grants, student

lecture tours, online geo-quizes and published

materials. We believe that the EAGE Student

Chapter will contribute to improving our relation-

ships as well as our knowledge. We aim to pro-

vide information about academic and professional

career opportunities; to become a platform for

networking among all majors; to improve the re-

lations between community and industry; and to

organize fi eld trips/camps to gain more practical

experience.’

Istanbul Technical University prides itself on hav-

ing a multi-cultural environment, appreciated by

the students since its foundation. It provides to its

students innovative educational facilities by using

its international contacts to help young, talented

individuals who are able to work not only within

their country’s borders but also in the global arena.

Meantime the country of Turkey has its own

distinctive ‘geo’ profi le. It occupies a very special

geographic position at the crossroads between

Europe and Asia bordered by three different

seas and located on an active tectonic region,

in the centre of the Alpine-Himalayan Mountain

Belt. This complex geological zone leads to wide

range of geological occurrences such as major

fault zones with large earthquakes, high potential

geothermal resources, wide range of mines and

minerals. Istanbul is the economic, cultural, and

historical heart of Turkey and has a unique texture

formed by the fusion of many cultures.

for young professionals, and provides a new scientifi c environment for

students and young professionals designed to enable them to realize

their leadership, scientifi c and creative potential. Activities of YPC take

place under guidance of experts focusing on the evaluation and sup-

port of new projects aimed at applications in industry.

Alexander Repnik, the author and leader of the project, spoke at the

presentation about the importance of shifting the focus to developing

people with a special mindset: ‘Investments into human capital should

be the key for great achievements. We will try to make a modest con-

tribution to inspiring a new generation of leaders for the energy indus-

try. We are open to new members and new partners all over the world.

Let’s create together a new petroleum generation’.

The project at Gubkin University is supported by the department of

exploration geophysics and computer systems headed by Prof Valeriy

Ryzhkov, who is very attentive to student initiatives. Students have par-

ticipated actively in the event and they would like to participate in fu-

ture realizations of this project. Members of YPC with specifi c respon-

sibilities include Alexander Repnik, Alexander Eliseev, Arsen Adilbekov

and Alibek Alisoltanov.

Intellectual tournament among universities organised by Gubkin University

EAGE Student Chapter.

Youth petroleum club launched at Gubkin University

Students inaugurate fi rst Chapter in Turkey

10 EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

INDUSTRY NEWS

Why oil and gas industry employers are worried

Skills shortages are again the biggest concern for employers (30%) in the oil and gas busi-

ness with economic instability a close second (24%), according to the sixth annual Hays Oil

& Gas Salary Guide.

The fi nding is said to refl ect the nervousness that had already crept into the industry when

this survey was undertaken last November. Twenty-nine per cent of employers cited inadequate

succession planning for knowledge transfer and skills retention as the key cause of skills short-

ages within the industry. While potential layoffs could lessen the skills shortage locally, there will

continue to be shortages for experienced talent within in-demand skill areas, such as subsea,

petroleum engineering and increasingly LNG.

John Faraguna, managing director, Hays Oil & Gas, said: ‘Since we collated the data the indus-

try has been through unprecedented times. Projects with attractive economics are likely to con-

tinue, but new projects will come under increased scrutiny and, if no longer economically viable

under the new oil price regime, could be postponed or cancelled.

‘However, teams managing day-to-day operations still require the resources necessary to com-

plete projects on time and within budget. At the other end of the spectrum, smaller businesses

are responding to recent changes by focusing on interim hiring, shifting from multi-year contracts

to short-term specialist assignments.’

Ninety-fi ve per cent of oil and gas professionals said salary is the most important factor when

considering a new role. In addition, 92% of job seekers judge company reputation as a crucial

element in their decision-making process when evaluating new job opportunities.

The guide included responses from more than 45,000 oil and gas professionals across 25 disci-

plines in 188 countries worldwide. Signifi cantly, 10,000 respondents globally were employers or

hiring managers within the industry. However, due to the timing of the survey the fall in global oil

prices has not been fully refl ected in the guide.

To attract top talent, 72% of employers felt they had to make improvements to their employ-

ee offering in the last year, including training and development, compensation and rewards.

As company reputation is such a signifi cant factor for job seekers in evaluating a job oppor-

tunity, employers increasingly have to develop a compelling employee value proposition to be

perceived as an employer of choice. In order to compete for the best talent and niche skills,

employers must showcase their training and professional development programmes to help

promote their brand and set themselves

apart in the industry.

With hiring plans impacted, employers

are faced with diffi cult decisions: how to re-

duce costs while still having the right skills

to deliver projects. Furthermore, a decrease

in hiring is likely to exacerbate the skills gap

and could result in further skills shortages in

the future. This year’s survey revealed 22.5%

of respondents worldwide are aged 50 and

above, which means that a signifi cant por-

tion of the tenured, skilled workforce will

be retiring over the next 5+ years. With the

anticipated reduced hiring of Gen Y workers

due to market conditions, the future genera-

tion of industry leaders, the industry may be

creating a future skills gap issue, much like it

did in the mid-to-late 1980s.

Fracking schools open up in UK

A National College for Onshore Oil

and Gas, based in Blackpool, has

been given the go-ahead by UK

Business, Enterprise and Energy Minister

Matthew Hancock.

The fi rst national UK shale colleges will

be linked to fi ve institutions across the UK,

including the Weir Advanced Research Cen-

tre at the University of Strathclyde, Scotland.

The new centres of excellence will train the

next generation of onshore oil and gas spe-

cialists, allowing Britain to make the most of

economic opportunities offered by natural

shale gas.

Hancock said: ‘Shale gas is an enormous

opportunity for the UK and one that we sim-

ply can’t afford to miss out on. Imagine if

we had passed up a similar opportunity to

go into the North Sea some 50 years ago.

What if we’d let that oil and gas stay in the

ground? What if we’d said it was too dif-

fi cult or too controversial?

‘The whole country would be poorer, fi -

nance would account for an even greater

share of our economy; I am not prepared

to pass up a once-in-a-generation economic

opportunity, with the potential for indus-

try to invest up to £33 billion in the next

15 years or so.’

He said the shale and gas industry is ex-

pected to create around 64,500 jobs.

Industry group the United Kingdom On-

shore Oil and Gas (UKOOG) led the bid to

set up the college.

Skills shortage for oil industry could be looming.

Matthew Hancock, Business, Enterprise and

Energy Minister.

11EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

INDUSTRY NEWS

Amongst the scholarships announced are

two full tuition scholarships at the gradu-

ate level, with fi ve 50% tuition scholarships

for taught Masters programmes and over

50 scholarships of €2000 euros. At un-

dergraduate level the university is offering

scholarships valued between 50% of the

full tuition fee and €2500.

University College Dublin (UCD), Ireland

has announced a scholarship to attract

students from India. The €250,000

scholarship funding is for students of both post-

graduate and UG programmes. The university

has also launched two new Masters level courses

in petroleum geosciences and actuarial sciences.

Gerald Byrne, vice president and college prin-

cipal, UCD College of Engineering and Architec-

ture, said: ‘We want to create awareness about

the possibilities for Indian students in Dublin in

the areas of science, technology and engineer-

ing. Also, we are developing a number of new

projects with key universities in India. With the

funding initiative we want to help more stu-

dents to come and study here and have a new

learning experience. Each scholarship will also

have a stipend to cover the living expenses.’

Funding initiative brings Indian students to Dublin

UK oil and gas doctoral training centre launched

University College Dublin campus.

Alistair Carmichael, Secretary of State for Scotland.

Secretary of State for Scotland Alistair

Carmichael has visited Heriot-Watt’s

Edinburgh Campus to hear about the

newly launched NERC Centre for Doctoral Train-

ing (CDT) in Oil and Gas and meet the fi rst co-

hort of students.

The £9m CDT combines the very best of aca-

demic and industrial expertise to train the next

generation of top level geoscience and environ-

mental researchers in oil and gas. It involves 17

UK universities, the British Geological Survey, the

National Oceanography Centre and nine spon-

sor companies. The £9M investment is funded

by £2.7m from NERC, £5.3m from the host high-

er education institutions plus over £1m already

pledged by the nine industry sponsors.

The CDT affords the opportunity for postgrad-

uate students to base their studies at their re-

spective higher education institutions but spend

periods during their four-year PhD undertaking

bespoke courses and specialist modules deliv-

ered by academic and industry experts as part of

a unique training academy.

Carmichael said: ‘I really valued the chance to

visit Heriot-Watt University and see how £2.7m

of Research Council funding is enabling Scotland

and the rest of the UK to remain at the forefront

of the Oil and Gas industry.’

Professor John Underhill, academic lead for

the NERC CDT in Oil and Gas, Shell Professor of

Exploration Geoscience at Heriot-Watt Univer-

sity, and former EAGE president, said: ‘Industry

experts have described the NERC CDT in Oil and

Gas as a truly game-changing initiative which

provides a unique opportunity to undertake and

contextualise oil and gas research and training to

address the energy challenge to keep the lights

on whilst respecting and addressing any environ-

mental impact it has.

Australian science students to learn from virtual cave tours

From classrooms around the country,

students in Australia will embark on

a digital journey exploring the iconic

Jenolan Caves, an important scientifi c en-

vironment full of learning opportunities. As

they progress through quests, the students

will explore the surrounding environment

and complete inquiry based learning tasks

that test their core science skills.

This virtual excursion is made possible by

the partnership between computer scientists

from CSIRO together with science education

experts from 3P Learning to develop

‘immersive learning’ environments.

Malcolm Turnball, Minister of Com-

munications, said: ‘This fantastic edu-

cation initiative enables students from

across Australia to explore locations from

their home or classroom, while improv-

ing their science skills along the way. It

makes online excursions a reality for stu-

dents who may never get the chance to

visit Australia’s most iconic sites.’

The programme combines 3P Learn-

ing’s latest educational resource, IntoSci-

ence, with high-defi nition panoramic vid-

eo and 3D models of real places scanned

using CSIRO’s award-winning laser map-

ping technology, Zebedee. CSIRO’s tech-

nology is the fi rst capable of mapping

caves with lasers while continuously mov-

ing, which makes it more effi cient and

more detailed than traditional methods.

12 EAGE NEWSLETTER STUDENTS ISSUE 1 2015

INDUSTRY NEWS / CALENDAR

EAGE Students Event Calendar April 20152 April Student Lecture Tour Asia Pacific

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

3 April Student Lecture Tour Asia Pacific

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

7 April Student Lecture Tour Asia Pacific Yangon, Myanmar

10 April Student Lecture Tour Asia Pacific Bandung, Indonesia

16-17 April 1st African Great Lakes Petroleum and Geoscience

Conference & Exhibition Kampala, Uganda

23-26 April Geosphere 2015 Silesia region, Poland

May 201514-17 May Geophysical Activity Programme (GAP) 2015

Freiburg, Germany

27 May Baku ‘15 Student Programme Baku, Azerbaijan

June 20151 June FIELD Challenge 2015 finals Madrid, Spain

2 June EAGE Geo-Quiz (global) Madrid, Spain

1-4 June Madrid 2015 Student Programme Madrid, Spain

4 June EAGE Student Chapter Meeting Madrid, Spain

July 201513-16 July IGSC 6 Prague, Czech Republic

13-27 July White Sea Field Camp on Shallow Geophysics 2015

Kandalaksha Gulf, Russia

27 Jul - 1 Aug 3rd Latin American Geosciences Student Conference

Niterói, Brazil

Holmes and the curious case of remote sensingThe legendary Sherlock Holmes mysteries writ-

ten by Arthur Conan Doyle in the late 19th and

early 20th century are currently enjoying a major

revival of media interest with TV drama series in

both the UK and the US loosely based on Holmes

and his partner Watson. Curious as it may seem,

the forensic skills of the great fi ctional detective

have been applied to produce an educational

guide to remote sensing.

The recently published Remote Sensing in

Action: The Curious Case of Sherlock Holmes and

Albert Einstein (SEG Geophysical Monograph Se-

ries No. 18) provides a unique and entertaining

use of the well-loved characters created by Sir

Arthur Conan Doyle to unravel and explain the

historical underpinnings of remote sensing.

The authors Enders Robinson and Dean Clark

effectively question how we learn about the

scientifi c method asking whether new theories

or experimental results are communicated effec-

tively by traditional methods (e.g., presentations

at professional meetings or publication in a peer-

reviewed journal). Their response is that the scien-

tifi c method needs to be applied to the scientifi c

method itself to fi nd out if other styles of commu-

nication might work better.

The extended appendices guarantee that all

of the science of remote sensing is included in

this book of ‘scientifi c fi ction’. The story covers

more than 2000 years, beginning with Pythago-

ras in ancient Greece and ending with Einstein’s

fi rst article on relativity in 1905. Light-years be-

yond a traditional science textbook, this detec-

tive story set in 1905 is designed to teach stu-

dents of all ages about the exciting journey of

scientifi c discovery.

The authors’s credentials for attempting such

an ambitious and entertaining project combine

the expertise of a very distinguished geoscience

innovator and a geoscience editor with a life-

long interest in everything Sherlock Holmes.

Enders A. Robinson is professor emeritus of

geophysics at Columbia University in the Mau-

rice Ewing and J. Lamar Worzel Chair. He was

a key infl uence in the introduction of digital

seismic processing and was a founder and fi rst

director of the Geophysical Analysis Group at

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),

where he earned degrees in mathematics (BS),

economics (MS) and geophysics (PhD). Dean

Clark, long-time editor of SEG’s The Leading

Edge until his retirement in 2013, has written

short stories and short plays based on charac-

ters in the Sherlock Holmes stories of Sir Arthur

Conan Doyle and also participates in a number

of Holmes-related societies and activities.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller as Holmes.