Table of Contents

Vol. 7, No. 1
1st Quarter 2001

PTTC Elects New Industry Leadership, Southmayd at Helm

Wm. Clark Southmayd, Jr., vice president of engineering and operations, Oneok Resources Company in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was elected chair of the PTTC Board of Directors at its annual meeting held on March 6, 2001, in Washington, D.C. He succeeds Leo A. Schrider, senior vice president for Belden & Blake Corp. in North Canton, Ohio, who had served as PTTC's chair since 1999. Schrider will remain on PTTC's Board as immediate past chair.

In addition, James Bruning, president and CEO, Bruning Resources, LLC., Fort Smith, Ark. was elected PTTC's vice chair. Newly elected to the Board of Directors were A. M. "Mac" Alloway, president, Tony Oil Company, Tulsa, OK (representing South Midcontinent Region); Gene Ames III, owner, Ames Energy Corp, San Antonio, TX (representing PTTC's Texas Region); Craig Howard, president, Howard Energy, Mount Carmel, IL (representing PTTC's Midwest Region); Mark Kapelke, vice president of operations and engineering Tidelands Production Co., Long Beach, CA (representing PTTC's West Coast Region); Terry Keane, vice president and general manager of Gas Technology Institute's Exploration and Production Business Unit, Houston, TX; and Rodney Reynolds, University of Kansas Energy Research Center (representing the regional lead organizations).

Southmayd managed the day-to-day drilling and production operations of Oneok as manager of drilling operations from 1986 to 1999. Prior to that he was a field and staff engineer for the company. His other responsibilities include environmental, regulatory, materials management, and various aspects of products marketing and acquisition/ divestiture evaluations of company assets. Mr. Southmayd served as the 1995-96 chairman of the Mid-Continent Section of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and he was also a 1995-97 board member of the Petroleum Club of Tulsa. He is a member of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, the Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association, and the Kansas Oil and Gas Association. Southmayd earned a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Southern Methodist University in 1981.

PTTC's Executive Director Don Duttlinger congratulated Schrider for his valuable leadership and unwavering support during his tenure as chair of PTTC. "Leo has always brought professionalism and key insights to the organization, which purely exemplifies our mission and the relationships necessary in transferring ideas among industry groups,” said Duttlinger. "I am joined by all who Leo has touched during his time with the organization in saying thanks for all he has given to make PTTC a valuable resource to the industry. We look forward to his continued input as immediate past chair, as he joins a growing list of distinguished board members."

PTTC especially wants to acknowledge the contributions of some individuals who are stepping down from the Board. Although no longer on the Board, PTTC knows they will continue to be a resource for PTTC and industry. Three of the listed individuals—Bob Nance, Chris Hall and Lester Moore—have been involved with PTTC since its inception.

• Bob Nance, Nance Petroleum Company, Montana, stepping down from the Board as immediate past Chair, participated initially as chair of the Producer Advisory Group (PAG) in the Rocky Mountain Region. Bob, a true pioneer, was successful at putting PTTC on the map and laying the foundation of the organization.
• Chris Hall, Drilling and Production Co., California, has served as chair of PTTC and as chair of the Producer Advisory Group in the West Coast Region since its inception. Throughout his service, Chris was instrumental in keeping PTTC networked with the Department of Energy and Capitol Hill.
• Lester Moore, MEPCO Inc., Indiana, has served as PAG chair for the Midwest Region from PTTC’s inception. Coming from the very mature Illinois basin area, Lester continually kept PTTC on track meeting the needs of very small producers.
• Larry Hulsey, independent, Texas, served as PAG Chair for the Texas Region during an exciting time when it more effectively connected with industry, established a Mentor program in the Permian Basin, and knitted together the diverse groups in the Texas industry.

"In many ways, I wish I had been able to work directly with each of the above individuals for a much longer period of time as they were key contributors and always quick with a response or support," commented Duttlinger. "I know we will remain close in this networked industry and I wish them the best in the future. They have sacrificed so much of their time for PTTC through their dedicated involvement. I am sure there are many families out there that will look forward to seeing them around a little more often."

Hart's E&P and PTTC Initiate New Technology Connections Service

Hart's E&P and PTTC are initiating a new technology connections service. Both organizations recognize that:

• Technology developers/providers need field performance data demonstrating effectiveness of their product/solution to move from concept to commercialization, and
• Producers often have vexing problems where technology solutions are not broadly known.

PTTC, through its website (http://www.pttc.org), is providing a place for producers to post their difficult problems or challenging opportunities. Keeping company names confidential, PTTC will post those needs on its website. Technology developers/ providers who believe they have a solution can respond to PTTC. PTTC will forward responses back to the producers, who then can choose which developers/providers they wish to respond to.

Hart's, through its website (http://www.EandPnet.com), is providing a place for technology developers/ providers wanting further field testing of a technology, product, or service to alert producers to what conditions they are looking for, and possibly special incentives for those producers to work with them.

Interested producers can respond directly to the developers/providers. To further alert producers to developing technologies, periodic columns in Hart's E&P will (with developer/provider permission) alert industry to technologies looking for a field test.

The focus of this technology connection initiative is to give producers a venue for identifying complex problems/opportunities and to stimulate more rapid commercialization of new technologies/ products/services. It is not an effort to enter the e-business world, rather it is a service to industry. Although not required of the parties, Hart's and PTTC encourage the involved parties to notify them of any field tests that occur or technology solutions that are found as a result of this initiative. PTTC and Hart's especially encourage both producers and technology developers/providers to share results publicly, so industry at large can benefit.

The kernel idea for this effort originated last spring during a conversation between PTTC and Hart’s staff at the SPE/DOE IOR Symposium in Tulsa. PTTC and Hart’s have long recognized that independents, while willing to take large risks in exploration, are hesitant to adopt technologies in the production and operations arena unless they are proven. In their eyes, proven means more than lab tests and a few isolated field examples. Ideally, independents want new technologies tested in their area before considering them proven. In a sense, technology developers want the same thing, but connecting with operators wanting to participate in that “proving process” can be costly and time consuming. PTTC and Hart’s encourage industry to support this effort. We think it can speed this “proving process” and improve the profitability of both developers and producers.

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Spotlight on Oklahoma's Marginal Well Commission

Although formally called the Oklahoma Commission on Marginally Producing Oil and Gas Wells, this state-authorized Commission is known as the Marginal Well Commission (MWC) by those who know them. Created in 1992, the MWC focuses on preserving marginal or stripper wells, of which Oklahoma has an abundance, making the MWC's logo particularly appropriate. Thorough analytic reports, practical field-oriented workshops, accessible information products and dedicated industry leadership characterize its efforts. The MWC and PTTC's South Midcontinent Region work together cooperatively to address operational topics of high interest to Oklahoma's small producers.

Although targeting Oklahoma operators, the MWC's information resources are, for the most part, available to producers across the country. Through the years, the MWC has addressed many topics in its workshops. Professional quality videos of the more popular ones are now available for purchase at nominal cost. Previews are available on their website (http://www.state.ok.us/~marginal).

Under the direction of Director Liz Fajen, the MWC is delivering a nine-part series of workshops on different aspects of being a "successful operator" at locations throughout Oklahoma during 2001. Topics in the series cover business, administrative/regulatory, and technology subjects—all essential to being a successful operator. If unable to attend these events, contact MWC after the workshop date to get copies of the notebooks. Also, don't miss their Trade Fair on June 8 in Oklahoma City.

For more information, contact MWC by phone 800-390-0460, 405-366-8688 or email mwc@mhs.oklaosf.state.ok.us.