Opal Oil and Gas Conference to be held on October 30

Muscat: The inaugural edition of Opal Oil & Gas Conference (OOGC) will be held on October 30 and 31 at the Grand Millennium Muscat.
The conference, organised by the Oman Society for Petroleum Services (Opal) alongside pioneer and leading exhibitions and conferences organiser Omanexpo, will centre on the theme ‘Driving excellence in upstream hydrocarbon activities in the Sultanate’, highlighting the Ministry of Oil & Gas’ initiatives to continue investment in oil exploration and enhanced oil recovery activities and other alternative sources of production and exploration and broaden the sector’s contribution to the economy.
High-level speakers from Oman’s key oil and gas companies will share their knowledge and experiences relating to the main topics: ‘Alternative Technologies for Oil and Gas’, ‘Cybersecurity on the Oil and Gas Sector’, ‘Oil and Gas Regulatory Frameworks and Standards’, and ‘In-Country Value - Sharing Best Practices’.
Session one of the first day will focus on alternative technologies in oil and gas, where Said Al Balushi from Occidental Oman will share insights on the advanced technologies related to the oil and gas industry. Marwan Chaar, vice president of Project Development of GlassPoint Solar will discuss how to use solar energy to produce low-cost, emissions-free steam for heavy oil production. Paul Fidder, regional director, Middle East, FSU and Egypt, SPD, will discuss new approaches to well engineering and construction. A case study on inspection of industrial confined spaces using Drone and 3D technology will be presented by Marien van den Hoek, CCO, RoNik Inspectioneering.
Apart from the main sessions, the conference will also include interactive panel sessions and HSE workshops, culminating in an exclusive gala dinner with a CEO panel session, which will be opened by Salim bin Nasser bin Said Al Aufi, undersecretary at the Ministry of Oil and Gas.
Raoul Restucci, managing director of Petroleum Development, Steve Kelly, president and general manager of Occidental of Oman Inc. (OXY Oman), Dr John Malcolm, executive managing director of Oman Oil Company Exploration & Production (OOCEP) and Mohammed Al Jahwari, chief executive officer of HydroCarbon Finder Oman (HCF) will share their insights on Oman’s oil and gas industry forecast and action plan up till 2020 at the CEO panel session during the gala dinner.
Musallam Al Mandhari, CEO, Opal said, “The OOGC platform is designed to challenge thinking and spur creativity. Attendees will take away new ideas, new relationships, and increased motivation to contribute to addressing these integrated challenges in new ways. With all the oil and gas stakeholders from the Sultanate confirmed to attend the event, this conference is not to be missed by any company looking for opportunities in the market.”
OOGC Oman is supported by Petroleum Development Oman and boasts of a sponsor lineup that includes Occidental of Oman, Oman Oil Company Exploration and Production, Oman LNG, and Omanexpo’s landmark oil and gas event, Oil and Gas West Asia.
The conference will be held under the auspices of the Ministry of Oil and Gas.