The Middle East Oil and Gas Show and Conference (MEOS 2019), which has over the last 40 years established a solid reputation as a high quality event with a unique calibre of attendees, is conducting for the first time, the Middle Eastern Energy Summit inviting international leaders to provide prospective about technologies, and energy outlook.

In an exclusive interview with OGN, Waleed Al-Mulhim, MEOS 2019 Chairman and Chief Petroleum Engineer, Saudi Aramco, says MEOS provides a unique opportunity for companies to collaborate through creating industrial, out-of-discipline, and academic partnership.

Excerpts from the interview:
What makes MEOS click as one of the largest and best attended technical events of its kind in the region?
MEOS represents a strategic industrial event in the Middle Eastern region, focusing on innovation, opportunities, and breakthroughs, addressed by senior industry leaders.

The event is under the patronage of His Royal Highness the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa and is supported by the Bahrain National Oil & Gas Authority (Noga), which is a great indication of the importance of MEOS as a major event in the region.

The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), which has unrivalled experience in organising petroleum conferences, is organising MEOS making it the most respected of its kind in the region.

What tangible benefits do Bahrain hope to achieve by organising MEOS year after year?
MEOS provides an opportunity looking beyond the industry; focusing on collaboration with business, educational institutions, governments and society. We need joint development of new technologies that will increase discovery and recovery, reduce cost, enhance safety and protect the environment.

To reaffirm MEOS’ position as one of the largest oil and gas event in the Middle East, what new features and initiatives are being added to the show this year?
MEOS is a platform to recognise the outstanding efforts in the upstream oil and gas industry toward promoting and adopting "Resilience Through Talent and Technology Transformation", highlighting major contributions and highly valued achievements.

MEOS this year is conducting for the first time, the Middle Eastern Energy Summit inviting international leaders to provide prospective about technologies, and energy outlook.

What is the expected number of exhibitors and visitors to the event this year? What will be the special highlights of the show this year?
The exhibition is 12,000 sq m showcasing specialised businesses and oil and gas corporations, providing a spatial environment to explore new technologies, partnership and business opportunities. The exhibition will host over 200 companies from 25 countries and expected visitors of more than 8,500.

What kind of opportunities does MEOS hold for participants in terms of initiating business, strategic collaborations?
MEOS provides a unique opportunity for companies to collaborate through creating industrial, out-of-discipline, and academic partnership. This type of alignment is believed to proactively play a vital role in achieving our targets with the highest outcomes. This will be visible through showcasing of so many new technologies in the MEOS exhibition, and presented by over 450 technical papers.

What kind of transformation is sought to be achieved in the oil and gas industry through innovation and operational excellence?
The oil industry continues to make huge steps, utilising the latest technology to refine and adapt processes and rationalise production methods. The industry can take the advantage of many opportunities driven from using data and technology to harness valuable knowledge out of the tera-scale data we are collecting from our smart fields.

Our industry is revolutionising business and operating models through a holistic application of digital technologies, the opportunity for the oil and gas industry to leverage the transformational impact of digitalisation has become more evident.

Will the transformation include a mind-set shift toward shorter-cycle projects, keeping in mind that already some $1 trillion worth of projects through 2020 have been deferred or cancelled as a result of the downturn?
As we face increasing complexity of operational environments and with the dynamic market, most investments that are being made are incremental with tangible gains.

Would the industry find the skilled workforce needed to fulfil the potential of shale revolution as well as the growth in deep-water and related mainstream projects?
The level of readiness in the industry is very high. Our industry is rich with top talents and skilled, well educated workforce supporting large projects. Oil and gas companies and academia have shared common grounds and deepened their footprint to enhance collaboration through guiding research directions toward current challenges.

MEOS is an excellent venue for the benefit of the industry, leveraging technical dissemination, attracting top young professional talents, and providing a spectrum of opportunities for all professionals.