JPT serves as the flagship forum for SPE members to explore technical and professional issues, and we continue to welcome noncommercial guest editorials, case studies, and technology analyses for publication.
In recent years, we’ve made a conscious effort to bring a more diverse set of voices from across the industry into JPT to share perspectives on trends, topical issues, and lessons from field trials of new technologies. Many of these submitted articles end up becoming some of our most-read content each month.
So, to those who have already contributed, we are grateful. And to those considering it, I encourage you to share your ideas and field experiences with JPT readers.
Submissions remain one of the most effective ways you can transfer knowledge to other SPE members, but JPT has always asked that they remain noncommercial, similar to the expectations for papers and presentations at SPE events.
Beyond that, we value originality and practical relevance to SPE members. We welcome contributions that showcase your expertise and analysis, but you don’t need decades of experience to share a valuable idea.
If you have a pitch to make about an emerging technology that recently turned in great results during a field trial, or just a question to ask about our writing style policies, please reach out at tjacobs@spe.org or visit our About JPT page to learn more.
In other news, as part of a broader set of program changes, the SPE Board has decided to sunset three specialty publications—HSE Now, Data Science and Digital Engineering (DSDE), and Oil and Gas Facilities (OGF). While this step will provide SPE with meaningful annual savings, it was one of several decisions made by the Board to align our programs with future priorities.
These core areas will still receive strong coverage, with their missions now integrated into JPT. Rather than operating as separate websites, content related to HSE, digital, and facilities will now be consolidated within the JPT platform.
The fact is many of you are already engaging with us this way. Since JPT adopted its current web format in 2021, we’ve seen how frequently readers use the “Topics” and “Discipline” links atop this article on the menu bar.
In 2024, the second-most clicked discipline was Data and Analytics, while the third-most clicked topic was AI/Machine Learning, followed closely by the topics Safety and Digital Oilfield. And the next two most-clicked topics last year? Onshore and Offshore Facilities and Energy Transition.
Additionally, industry dynamics over the past few years have resulted in HSE and digital topics becoming intertwined with much of our traditional technology and SPE conference coverage. We think that’s a good thing. It shows how the upstream sector is embedding more holistic concepts into its tech portfolio as it faces the dual challenge of lowering emissions while increasing overall global energy supply.
The HSE Now, OGF, and DSDE newsletters will also no longer be available, and we are asking subscribers who wish to continue receiving updates on these disciplines to sign up for the JPT newsletter, where future coverage of their respective topics will be featured.
The Way Ahead (TWA), SPE’s publication for students and young professionals, will remain a standalone website. Built largely on member contributions and editorial support, TWA will continue to provide content that informs, motivates, and educates the next generation of energy producers.
This latest step for JPT’s “sister” publications continues a years-long effort to modernize SPE’s publishing model. Until 2017, JPT online was limited to a once-monthly replica of the printed magazine. Since then, it has grown into a regularly updated, wide-ranging resource for upstream technology news and features, offering SPE members far more than print could ever accommodate.
The COVID-19 pandemic marked another turning point as global supply chain shocks made printing and shipping tens of thousands of monthly issues to every professional SPE member across more than 140 countries unsustainable. In response, the SPE Board voted to transition JPT to an all-digital format in 2020.
Since then, JPT’s readers have clicked through and read several millions of pages of upstream technology content at a pace unimaginable when the first black-and-white edition of the magazine was printed in 1949. The publication has, of course, seen many changes and evolved along the way, but a couple of constants remain.
First, JPT’s mission has always reflected SPE’s broader goal to collect and transmit technical discoveries and advancements that move the global oil and gas industry forward. Second, our own scope of reporting has grown steadily, with more articles and a wider range of topics as the industry itself expands to embrace new challenges, strategies, and technologies.
With a more integrated publishing model, we will continue to adapt alongside the industry while staying true to our mission.
