Three experts from Total delivered lectures on ‘Oil Field Development, an Integrated Approach’ to senior students of Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMU-Q) over two weeks. The course concluded last week.
Max Mille, Alphonse Grynko and Etienne Moreau have over 38 years of experience working in Total Group, and have regularly delivered technical and business-related presentations and courses in their fields of expertise.
They are part of the ‘Total Professeurs Associes’, a non-profit association supported by Total, where member professors are working or retired Total Group employees.
Dr Mark H Weichold, dean and CEO of TAMU-Q, said  the valuable experience enhanced the participants’ understanding of subjects such as reservoir geology, log analysis, reservoir engineering, drilling and production; all essential knowledge for a practicing petroleum engineer.
“This course is a perfect example of industry collaborating with academia to directly affect student learning,” he stated.
Dr Vassilios Kelessidis, professor and programme chair of the petroleum engineering department at TAMU-Q, explained that the professors covered all aspects of oil field development from exploration to production.
“The exposure of our students to such material and examples will enhance their abilities and will prepare them to become even better professionals.”
Stephane Michel, managing director of Total E&P Qatar concluded “Total aims to build a bridge between the oil and gas industry, and academic institutions. We are strongly determined to support the development of a top oil and gas industry in Qatar, and there is no better way to do it than to bring our experts, to interact with students and give them a better understanding of how we function as an industry.”
“There is no better way to learn about something than from the experts in the field. The TOTAL course has offered us the chance to learn from those experts in the petroleum field, who shared with us their significant insights and professional experience” said Dana al-Mannai, Publications and Technology Officer at the Society of Petroleum Engineers Student Chapter at TAMU-Q.