JPT October 2026 Issue
On the Cover
BP’s Thunder Horse production semisubmersible, which will begin receiving about 15,000 BOEPD in 2028 from a subsea pump installation project.
Monthly Features
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With confidence in subsea boosting performance growing, BP is incorporating pumping systems into both greenfield developments and brownfield expansions. -
As the pace of new discoveries slows and high-quality prospects become harder to find, oil companies may need to rely more heavily on mature fields to maintain production and support future supply. -
The legacy of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is a persistent problem in many industries, including upstream oil and gas. In this Q&A, remediation expert Grant Scott presents the trouble with these “forever chemicals” and the mitigating efforts being used. -
This guest editorial examines why geothermal projects require a different planning, financing, and development approach than traditional oil and gas projects.
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Investment research firm TSCS reports that 60 to 65% of the highest-quality acreage in the Permian Basin, the most productive US shale basin, has already been drilled. The firm also estimates that only 3 to 4 years of Tier 1 premium inventory remains at the current drilling rate. This is driving industry-wide strategy shifts as companies move to lower tier and specula…
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A shared digital mindset across subsurface, subsea, and drilling and wells is accelerating well planning at Vår Energi.
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Get more from ATCE 2026 with a strategic plan for learning, networking, technology scouting, and career growth. Susan Howes shares how to maximize the value of SPE's premier annual event.
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After years of market shocks, technological breakthroughs, and rising uncertainty, ATCE 2026 will provide new insights on how industry leaders and technical experts are preparing for the next era of the upstream business.
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Each year during its Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition (ATCE), SPE honors members whose outstanding contributions to the Society and the petroleum industry merit special distinction. Recipients will be recognized at the Annual Awards Banquet on 22 October.
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New agreements for exploration and production in Africa include activity in the Orange Basin offshore Namibia, offshore Angola, Senegal, and Côte d’Ivoire. In the Gulf of Mexico, a memorandum of understanding for deepwater evaluation was signed between Woodside Energy and PEMEX and Viridien initiated its Walker Ridge Reimaging Extension. TotalEnergies provided a targe…
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This section lists with regret SPE members who recently passed away.
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SPE technical papers synopsized in each monthly issue of JPT are available for download for SPE members for 2 months.
Offshore Drilling and Completion
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This edition highlights three offshore technology papers that address a common industry theme: how targeted engineering solutions can reduce uncertainty, shorten operations, and make technically constrained offshore well activities more executable.
Artificial Lift
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Unlike traditional AI approaches that rely primarily on historical data, physics-based AI integrates physical laws, engineering expertise, and operational constraints directly into the learning process. Three recent SPE papers illustrate how this paradigm is transforming the industry through intelligent condition monitoring, virtual sensing, and autonomous production …
Emissions Management
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Emissions management covers a wide array of topics such as carbon capture, use, and storage; emissions monitoring; flare management; methods to improve operational efficiency; carbon accounting; and the effect of emissions management on global and local economics. The papers published in the past year span all these subcategories.
Sand Management
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Three papers are highlighted as the primary contributions because of their broad industry relevance. They focus on improving formation particle-size characterization, expanding the application of openhole gravel packs in depleted and compartmentalized reservoirs, and advancing the understanding of capillary pressure in sand production.