JPT January 2026 Issue
On the Cover
A drill bit coated in drilling mud on the rig floor as it is pulled out of hole. Source: Wirestock/Getty Images.
Monthly Features
-
Even as output hits record highs, a growing recognition of the Permian’s maturity is opening the door for new technologies to improve performance. -
Operators are turning to new gas lift and nanoparticle-fluid technologies to drive up production rates. -
As cutting-edge technologies unlock geothermal potential, Japan is channeling investments into powerhouse projects across the US, Indonesia, and New Zealand—priming its own reserves for a clean energy boom at home. -
This article is the sixth and final Q&A in series from the SPE Research and Development Technical Section focusing on emerging energy technologies. In this final edition, Matthew T. Balhoff, SPE, of The University of Texas at Austin shares his views on the future of upstream education.
-
Experience in subsurface production and lift design is shaping a new generation of geothermal operations built for reliability and scalability.
-
What do today’s membership trends mean for SPE? While declining numbers and an aging demographic can be unsettling, the reality is that these challenges are not unique to SPE. As professional associations everywhere face generational shifts, SPE members have an opportunity to hear about the success stories ongoing now and reflect on what will sustain our community in …
-
Field results highlight how rethinking tubing-anchor-catcher design can reduce gas interference and support late-life production.
-
Only about one-third of Africa’s discovered hydrocarbon resources have reached commercialization.
-
Updates about global exploration and production activities and developments.
People
-
This section lists with regret SPE members who recently passed away.
SPE Technical Paper Downloads
-
SPE technical papers synopsized in each monthly issue of JPT are available for download for SPE members for 2 months.
EOR Modeling
-
As the industry accelerates carbon capture, use, and storage initiatives, modeling innovations for CO₂ injection and enhanced oil recovery have become critical for optimizing recovery and ensuring secure storage. Recent studies highlight a shift toward data-driven and hybrid approaches that combine computational efficiency with operational practicality.
Mature Fields and Well Revitalization
-
These papers exemplify value creation at each stage of hydrocarbon maturation and should prompt practitioners to don their thinking caps.
Well Integrity
-
Two critical facets of the discipline of well control and wellbore integrity—decarbonization and groundbreaking automation of essential processes—are highlighted in the three primary paper selections presented at SPE and SPE-affiliated conferences during the past year.
Data Science, Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence
-
Are we in an AI bubble? The question may seem academic to petroleum engineers who are already capitalizing on the momentum of digitalization across the industry, yet any engineer, regardless of their career stage, could be forgiven for feeling overwhelmed by the sheer scope of specialized skills now demanded in this rapidly evolving digital landscape.