Syed A. Ali, SPE Honorary Member and technical expert in formation-damage control, sandstone acidizing, and production chemistry, and a prolific author of technical literature, passed away 28 November. He was 80.
Ali began his career in 1976 as a project geologist at Gulf Research and Development Company in Houston. He held various positions at Chevron starting in 1981 and became a Chevron Fellow at Chevron Energy Technology Company. In 2007, he became a technical advisor for Schlumberger. Ali’s technical expertise in production technologies was widely recognized in the industry.
Ali published his first book Sandstone Diagenesis—Applications to Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production in 1981. He authored approximately 150 technical papers and was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer on “Fluid Selection for Deepwater Completions—New Frontiers Bring New Fluid-Related Challenges” in 2004 and 2005. He was part of several SPE editorial committees and made significant contributions to the technical library. Ali served as the executive editor of SPE Production & Operations from 2004 to 2006. He was a member of the JPT Editorial Review Board for many years since 2008. Ali was the technical reviewer of papers on Water Management published in JPT and became the chair of the board in 2014. With his impressive knowledge and connections with technical experts in various disciplines, he helped recruit several subject-matter experts to the review board.
Ali planned, organized, and chaired several SPE technical events. He said, “Many of my innovative solutions in production chemistry came from technology information within SPE.” Ali was the chairperson and co-chairperson for the 2006 SPE Applied Technology Workshop (ATW) on Deepwater and 2004 ATW on Matrix Acidizing, respectively. In 2006, he was co-chair of the Acid Stimulation and Remedial Treatments Session of the SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition and the SPE Symposium on Formation Damage Control. He played an instrumental role in establishing the SPE Production and Operations Conference in 2009. Ali also helped to establish the SPE Deepwater Drilling and Completions Conference in 2010 and was co-chair of the 2014 conference.
For his contributions, Ali was recognized with many SPE awards through his years of SPE involvement. He received the SPE Production and Operations Award in 2006, SPE Distinguished Service Award in 2012, SPE Distinguished Membership in 2013, and SPE DeGolyer Distinguished Service Medal in 2014. In 2015, he was awarded the highest SPE recognition of Honorary Membership “for his truly inspirational dedication and service to SPE; selflessly volunteering and actively leading many SPE committees and initiatives to further the mission of SPE for more than 27 years; and for his vital technical contributions to the technical literature.”
Ali held BS and MS degrees in geology from the University of Karachi in Pakistan, an MS in geology from Ohio State University, and a PhD in geology from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.