Front-line experts responsible for the future of the oil and gas industry are making final preparations for the 15th Society of Petroleum Engineers Oil & Gas Show and Conference (MEOS 2007) due to take place from March 12 to 14 at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre.

This landmark event held under the patronage of the Prime Minister of Bahrain Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa will focus attention on the technical and business challenges – and equally extensive opportunities – the Middle East faces in managing what have become the world’s most important energy reserves.
 SPE International Conference
The high level technical conference which runs parallel to the exhibition of products and services takes place this year under the theme Delivering Energy: Faster, Better and Smarter.
Organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), over 1,500 delegates are expected to attend.
“This theme encapsulates the challenges and solutions necessary in today’s demanding oil and gas business. Every word is a keyword: ‘Delivering’ implies meeting the rising demand; ‘Energy’ acknowledges the role of oil and gas; ‘Faster’ hints at the shortening development cycle and need for more efficient work practices; ‘Better’ reminds us that we need always to be improving our HSE performance; and ‘Smarter’ emphasises how this is essentially a challenge for people and for those people to take advantage of the latest technologies,” MEOS 2007 Conference Chairman and Saudi Aramco’s Vice President of Petroleum Engineering and Development Amin H Nasser said.
The theme will be addressed in a pace-setting panel session on 11 March with high level guest speakers drawing on their own experience to show that greater efficiencies can be reached using today’s exciting technical advances.
Following welcome addresses by Minister of Oil and Gas Affairs and Chairman of the National Oil and Gas Authority Dr Abdul-Hussain Ali Mirza and the 2007 SPE President Abdul Jaleel AlKhalifa, they include: Abdallah S Jum’ah, President and Chief Executive Officer, Saudi Aramco, Andrew Gould, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Schlumberger, Chad Deaton, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Baker Hughes, John Malcolm, Managing Director, Petroleum Deve-lopment Oman, Stephen Cassiani, President, ExxonMobil Upstream Upstream Research Co.
A total of 158 traditional technical sessions and a selection of panel sessions that allow a high level of participation by delegates will follow over the subsequent three days of the conference in five concurrent sessions.
World-Class Exhibition
The latest products and services available in the quest to unlock the region’s full potential will meanwhile go on display at the associated 14,000 square metre exhibition.
In total, 282 companies from 28 countries will be in attendance.
“The exhibition is as equally impressive as the technical programme we have in store. What you will see at the booths of the world’s foremost service, instrumentation and equipment firms active in the region, is the very demonstration of Faster, Better and Smarter,” Nasser said.
Key participants making a return appearance at MEOS include all six GCC national oil companies: Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), Qatar Petroleum Corporation and the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco).
International oil companies also maintain a strong presence with Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil and Shell occupying significant exhibition space. Service industry giants Baker Hughes, CGGVeritas, Weatherford and Schlumberger amongst others consolidate this line up in addition to dedicated Iraq, UK and North American pavilions and smaller specialist suppliers and distributors.
Acknowledging the importance of the MEOS series, the SPE have also chosen the event to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
The occasion will be marked by a gala dinner at the Ritz-Carlton Bahrain, Hotel and Spa on March 11.
“Over the last five decades, SPE has promoted excellence in our industry and in our profession. The SPE is pleased to be celebrating its 50th anniversary as a professional society during MEOS 2007,” Al-Khalifa said.
MEOS 2007 will open daily to trade visitors from 08.30 to 17.30 hours.
MEOS 2007 is organised by Arabian Exhibition Management in association with London based Overseas Exhibition Services, both members of Allworld Exhibitions.