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Muscat: Focus was on enhanced oil recovery (EOR) when industry experts from all around the world met for a three-day Oil & Gas West Asia 2008 Exhibition and Conference in Muscat on Saturday.
"In the current situation EOR is more economical and feasible," said Waleed Refaay, managing director, Middle East, North Africa and India for the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). The SPE, a non-profit association whose members from more than 115 countries are engaged in energy resources development and production, are managing the conference on EOR.
"Over 50 per cent of oil is not recovered after the completion of primary and secondary recovery mechanisms, but with the increase in demand and high price of oil there's a need to push for recovering the remaining oil through EOR," said Said Al Hinai, technical programme chairperson of Petroleum Development Oman (PDO).
He advocated mixing EOR with conventional methods from the start of recovery oil from the fields. "Combining these methods would give us oil at a sustainable manner," he said.
"We want experts to tell us how to get oil in a sustainable manner, not only for this generation but also for the future generations," Al Hinai said. Thus, he added, young Omani engineering students from the Sultan Qaboos University would be invited for the conference.
Held under the patronage of the Ministry of Oil and Gas, the exhibition is officially supported by PDO as well as BG Oman as the platinum sponsor and BP Oman as the gold sponsor. The co-sponsors are Oman LNG, Seven Seas Petroleum, Sharaf Shipping Agency and Weatherford.
More than 150 companies from 21 countries and a large number of industry professionals from all over the world will be taking part in the event.
Biggest ever
"With the participation of local and international firms including many national oil & gas companies in the GCC, the exhibition will be the biggest ever event in Oman for the oil and gas industry since the inaugural edition of the event in 1998," said CJ Paul, general manager of Omanexpo, the leading exhibition management company in the sultanate.
Paul pointed out that the exhibition, which will be held at the Oman International Exhibition Centre, will showcase the technologies, products, equipment, and technical services for the oil and gas industry in Oman and other parts of the region.
Among the countries that will be represented in the exhibition are Bahrain, China, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Iran, Italy, South Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, Norway, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, UAE, UK and USA.
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