Co-hosted with Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) and under the auspices of the Ministry of Oil & Gas, the annual congress will address challenges and discuss opportunities across the heavy oil value chain through a two-day strategic conference

More than 500 delegates from over 40 countries will attend the 2018 edition of the World Heavy Oil Congress & Exhibition (WHOC), being held in Muscat, Oman, from September 3 to 5.

Co-hosted with Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) and under the auspices of the Ministry of Oil & Gas, the annual congress will address challenges and discuss opportunities across the heavy oil value chain through a two-day strategic conference, a three-day technical conference and a three-day international exhibition.

Jean-Philippe Cossé, vice president, Middle East, at dmg events, the organiser of WHOC, says: "We are both proud and excited to be hosting the 2018 edition of the congress in the Middle East for the very first time, which is home to one third of the world’s heavy and extra heavy oil resources. It will act as an invaluable platform for the global heavy oil industry to gather and learn from each other."

He added: "The sultanate enjoys high quantity petroleum production, a competitive infrastructure with global standards, and has future development plans to positively impact the country’s production. This, coupled with unrivalled hospitality, promises to make this year’s congress and exhibition a memorable one."

The strategic conference will cover 10 diverse topics on investments, creating agile business models, a collaboration between heavy oil producing countries, and unlocking refining potential and value chain performance. Some of the key conference speakers include: Dr Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy, Minister for Oil & Gas, Oman; Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Minister of Oil, Bahrain; Raoul Restucci, managing director, Petroleum Development Oman; Dr Bakheet Al Katheeri, CEO, Mubadala Petroleum; Steve Kelly, president and general manager, Occidental Mukhaizna; Giuseppe Ricci, chief refining and marketing officer, ENI SPA; S M Farouq Ali, professor of petroleum engineering, University of Houston; and Dr S K Majumdar, executive director (refining and technology), Indian Oil R&D.

The technical conference will encourage greater knowledge exchange and networking where attendees can expect to gain knowledge of upstream, midstream and downstream heavy oil projects, new technologies and services through over 80 technical case studies and presentations from across the globe.

Heavy oil is increasingly being tapped in Oman

Petroleum engineering function director at Petroleum Development Oman and co-chairman of the World Heavy Oil Congress & Exhibition 2018, Dr Ali Al Gheithy, says: "It is a great opportunity for Oman to host this prestigious event in Muscat. Oman is already exploiting a lot of its heavy oil resources and this trend will continue and expand in the future. Oman has ongoing full field developments of heavy oil using both thermal and chemical (polymer flood) processes – this is a significant part of Oman’s daily production. So, we have several areas of our experiences to share as well as learn from all our visitors who will be attending."

WHOC will also host an international exhibition where regional and international NOCs, IOCs, service and technology providers will showcase the best technologies, products, and services for the heavy oil sector. The exhibition is open to all participants including government representatives, project owners, consultants, contractors, and investors to meet, do business, and maximise the evolving opportunities in the heavy oil sector both across the Middle East and globally. Some of the confirmed exhibitors include: Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), Eni SPA, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), Kitsnet, Badr EOR, Albpetrol, RGL Reservoir Management Ltd, SoluForce, HP Well Screen, and Salamander.

Petroleum Development Oman is the Host Sponsor of WHOC 2018 with ENI as the Platinum Sponsor. The event is also sponsored by GlassPoint Solar and supported by Business Gateway as In Country Value Partner in addition to Oman Air, Oman Holidays and Oman Tourism as Official Travel Partners.