SPE/AIME Anthony F. Lucas Gold Medal for Technical Leadership
The Anthony F. Lucas Gold Medal recognizes achievement in improving techniques and practices of finding and producing petroleum.
Dave Cramer is a senior engineering fellow on the ConocoPhillips global completions engineering staff in Houston, specializing in hydraulic fracturing applications. He previously worked for The Western Company of North America at various operational and technical positions (1977–1986) and BJ Services as technical manager for the Rocky Mountain region (1986–2017).
He is a registered professional engineer in Colorado, has published 76 technical papers, and holds three US patents. He was selected as an SPE Distinguished Lecturer in 2003–2004 and 2021–2022. He served as the US/Canada Rocky Mountain Regional Director on the SPE International Board from 2004 to 2007. His industry recognitions include the 1993 SPE Denver Section Henry Mattson Technical Achievement Award, 2011 SPE Completions Optimization and Technologies Award, 2019 SPE Distinguished Member Award, and the 2020 SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Certificate.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics with high honors and departmental distinction from Rutgers College.
SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Medal
The Cedric K. Ferguson Medal is presented to young professional authors of an SPE peer-approved technical paper who are members of SPE and are 35 or younger on the date of peer approval. Coauthors 36 or older who were SPE members on the date of peer approval receive the Cedric K. Ferguson Certificate.
Xiangjun Chen is an engineer of petroleum production at Sinopec Group Northwest Petroleum Branch, primarily focused on hydraulic fracturing research. Before joining Sinopec, he graduated from Chongqing University of Science and Technology, where he participated in the publication of 10 technical papers related to his field of study.
He holds a master’s degree in petroleum and natural gas engineering from Chongqing University of Science and Technology and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and automation from Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology.
Jun Hong is a petroleum production engineer at Jianghan Oilfield Company of Sinopec specializing in hydraulic fracturing research. He participated in the publication of eight technical papers related to his research field.
He holds a master’s degree in petroleum and natural gas engineering from Chongqing University of Science and Technology and a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Weifang University.
Zhelun Li is a master’s student at Chongqing University of Science and Technology, focusing on the field of hydraulic fracturing, and has participated in and published seven technical papers in related fields.
Yang Xu is a petroleum production engineer at Shengli Oilfield Branch of Sinopec, focusing on hydraulic fracturing research. Prior to joining Shengli Oilfield Branch of Sinopec, he graduated from Chongqing University of Science and Technology and has been involved in publishing five technical papers related to his field of study.
He holds a master’s degree in petroleum and natural gas engineering from Chongqing University of Science and Technology and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical manufacturing and automation from Shandong Institute of Petrochemical Technology.
Chengying Li is an engineer of petroleum production at Sinopec East China Oil and Gas Company, primarily focused on hydraulic fracturing research. He has participated in the publication of seven technical papers related to his field of study.
He holds a master’s degree in petroleum and natural gas engineering from Chongqing University of Science and Technology.
SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Certificate
Hai Qu is a professor of petroleum engineering at Chongqing University of Science and Technology. Before joining the university, he worked as a senior production engineer at the Sinopec Research Institute of Petroleum Engineering in Beijing. He has authored over 60 technical papers, written two monographs on hydraulic fracturing, translated five English monographs, and holds 40 Chinese patents.
He holds a PhD in petroleum engineering from China University of Petroleum (Beijing) and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Southwest Petroleum University.
SPE/AIME Charles F. Rand Memorial Gold Medal
The Charles F. Rand Memorial Gold Medal Award recognizes distinguished achievement in mining administration, including metallurgy and petroleum.
Waleed AlMulhim is Saudi Aramco’s senior vice president of petroleum engineering and development. His career with Saudi Aramco began in 1984. Among his current responsibilities, he is a board member of Saudi Aramco Services Company in Houston, Aramco Digital Company, Saudi Aramco Upstream Technology Company, and the Arabian Drilling Company.
AlMulhim has participated in several SPE programs, executive committees, and panels, in multiple regional and international conferences. He currently chairs the Board of Directors of the SPE Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Section. In 2010, he received the SPE Middle East Regional Management and Information Award.
He holds a BS in petroleum engineering from the University of Southern California and a master’s degree in petroleum engineering from Stanford University. He completed his executive education at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, New Hampshire, and he attended Saudi Aramco’s Management Development Seminar in Washington in 2008.
SPE/AIME DeGolyer Distinguished Service Medal
The DeGolyer Distinguished Service Medal recognizes distinguished and outstanding service to SPE, to the professions of engineering or geology, and to the petroleum industry.
Phaneendra Babu Kondapi is an affiliate professor at Colorado School of Mines in the department of chemical and biological engineering and president of Jaajitech Digital. In his previous roles, he served as the founding director and assistant dean of engineering programs at the University of Houston (UH) Katy, Texas, campus and as a professor and director of subsea engineering. He also served as the director of subsea engineering and professor of practice at Texas A&M University. Previously, he worked in the industry for over 20 years including at FMC Technologies, KBR, and Wood.
Kondapi has initiated many academic programs including the first subsea program in the US and many academic and research collaborations including between Indian Institute of Petroleum and Energy (IIPE) and UH as well as Texas A&M University. He is a volunteer for SPE, Offshore Technology Conference, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), and American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). He is a founding member and past program committee chair of AIChE-UEFA Forum, founding member and past chair of the SPE Flow Assurance Technical Section, founding member and chair-elect of the newly established SPE Hydrogen Technical Section, founding member and director of SPE Flow Measurement Technical Section, advisory member of SPE Projects and Facilities Advisory Committee, and served as the chair for SPE Forum on Flow Assurance—The Future State of the Art. He has more than 100 technical and industrial presentations and has authored over 25 technical publications.
He is an SPE Distinguished Member and received the 2013 SPE Innovative Teaching Fellow Award, 2019 SPE Projects, Facilities, and Construction Award, 2017 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Projects, Facilities, and Construction Award, 2017 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Distinguished Petroleum Engineering Faculty Award, Engineer of Distinction Award from College of Engineering (Tennessee Technological University), and Outstanding Alumnus Award from College of Engineering (Andhra University).
Kondapi holds a PhD from Tennessee Technological University and bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Andhra University, all in chemical engineering.
SPE Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty
This award recognizes superior teaching, excellence in research, significant contributions to the petroleum engineering profession, or special effectiveness in advising and guiding students.
Cem Sarica is the Floyd M. Stevenson Distinguished Professor of Petroleum Engineering at the University of Tulsa (TU) where he has been a faculty member since 2001. His research interests are multiphase flow in pipes, flow assurance, and artificial lift. He was an associate professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering (PNGE) at Penn State University between 1998 and 2001, a research associate at TU between 1992 and 1996, and an assistant professor of PNGE at Istanbul Technical University (ITU) between 1990 and 1992.
Sarica served as an SPE Projects, Facilities, and Construction Advisory Committee Member (2002–2019) and an SPE Projects and Facilities Advisory Committee Member (2019–2022). He was instrumental in establishing the SPE Flow Assurance Technical Section and served as section officer from 2012 to 2018. He was also an SPE Journal Editorial Board Member between 1999 and 2007. He received the 2010 SPE Production and Operations Award, 2012 SPE Distinguished Member, 2015 SPE John Franklin Carll Award, and 2015 SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Certificate.
He holds BSc and MSc degrees from ITU and a PhD from TU, all in petroleum engineering.
SPE Distinguished Member Award
SPE Distinguished Membership, limited to 1% of SPE professional membership, recognizes SPE members whose achievements and/or service to the Society are deemed worthy of special recognition.
Craig Cipolla is a principal engineering advisor in the Hess Technology Team where he provides hydraulic fracturing, completions, and reservoir engineering support to Hess business units worldwide. His expertise in tight/unconventional reservoirs includes a unique combination of hydraulic fracturing, geomechanics/geophysics, and reservoir engineering skills. Prior to joining Hess, he was chief engineering advisor–hydraulic fracture monitoring and optimization for SLB. Before joining SLB, he served as VP of stimulation technology for Carbo Ceramics (2008–2009) and VP of engineering for Pinnacle Technologies (1996–2008). Prior to joining Pinnacle in 1996, he held positions with Union Pacific Resources, CER Corporation, and Dresser Titan. Cipolla has authored or coauthored more than 90 technical papers and was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer on hydraulic fracturing (2005–2006). He received the 2013 SPE Completions Optimization and Technology Award and has served on organizing committees for and chaired several SPE conferences and workshops.
He holds bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and engineering from the University of Nevada–Las Vegas and a master’s degree in petroleum engineering from the University of Houston.
Jim Crompton is affiliate professor at Colorado School of Mines and is director of Reflections Data Consulting. Prior to this, he worked as a Chevron Fellow from 1976 to 2013.
He received the 2019 SPE International Management and Information Award and the 2016 SPE Gulf Coast North American Regional Management and Information Award. He was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer (2010–2011).
He holds a BS in geophysical engineering and an MS in geophysics from the Colorado School of Mines, and an MBA degree from Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas.
Alfred “Bill” William Eustes III is an associate professor emeritus in the petroleum engineering department at the Colorado School of Mines where he was a faculty member for 25 years. Prior to that, he was an ARCO oil and gas field senior drilling and production engineer.
He was awarded the 2020 SPE Rocky Mountain North America Regional Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty, 2019 SPE Rocky Mountain North America Regional Drilling Engineering Award and was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer for the 2013–2014 season. He was the 2020 chair of SPE’s Engineering Professionalism Committee, 2013 chair of SPE’s Education and Accreditation Committee, and was a board member of the SPE Drilling Systems Automation Technical Section until 2021. He is currently a National Renewable Energy Lab Joint Appointee developing geothermal drilling improvements.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Louisiana Tech, a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Colorado–Boulder, and a PhD in petroleum engineering from the Colorado School of Mines. He is a professional engineer in Colorado.
Zuleima Karpyn is The Pennsylvania State University’s Donohue Family Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering and Associate Dean for Graduate Education and Research in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. Karpyn specializes in multiphase flow and transport in porous media, and digital rock physics.
Karpyn received the 2008 US National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early CAREER Development Award, 2010 Wilson Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2018–2019 Big Ten Academic Leadership Fellow, and Fulbright US Scholar in 2016–2017 (in Colombia) and 2023–2024 (in Spain). She has also served as associate editor of the SPE Journal (2009–2014), assistant editor in chief of the Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering (2014–2017), associate editor of Transport in Porous Media (2018–present), and deputy editor of Geoenergy (2022–present).
Karpyn holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Universidad Central de Venezuela, and master’s and PhD degrees in petroleum and natural gas engineering from The Pennsylvania State University.
Neal B. Nagel has more than 35 years of oilfield and mining geomechanics experience having started with Phillips Petroleum in the late 1980s. In his 20 years with Phillips and ConocoPhillips, he worked on oilfield geomechanics issues such as hydraulic fracturing, wellbore stability, triggered seismicity, and compaction/subsidence and was the subsidence engineer for the company in Norway from 1993 to 1999. Since 2009, he has provided geomechanics consulting for the oil and gas, mining, and solution mining industries via his own consulting company, OilField Geomechanics LLC.
He has authored/coauthored more than 50 technical papers. Nagel was a SPE Distinguished Lecturer in 2004 and 2016, immediate past chair of the SPE Geomechanics Technical Section, currently co-chair of the upcoming SPE/ARMA workshop on Underground Storage, chief editor of the 2010 SPE Monograph on Solids Injection, recent co-chair of the SPE Summit on Casing Deformations in Unconventionals, and a former section officer for the SPE Bartlesville (Oklahoma) Section. Nagel is also currently an adjunct professor of petroleum engineering at the University of Wyoming.
He holds a PhD in mining engineering from Missouri University of Science and Technology.
Hariprasad J. Subramani has been with Chevron for about 17 years where he serves as the manager for global strategic partnerships. Prior to this role, he served as a technology lead for flow assurance and sand management at Chevron where he managed several R&D programs in collaboration with research institutions globally, qualified and deployed relatively mature technologies in deepwater assets, and provided technical consultation to oil and gas field design and operations.
Subramani is a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry UK (FRSC), and received the 2021 SPE Projects, Facilities, Construction Award, 2016 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Production and Operations Award, 2013 SPE Gulf Coast North America Section Regional Projects, Facilities, and Construction Award, 2012 AIChE South Texas Section–Best Applied Research Paper Award, and Chevron recognitions for his technical contributions, leadership, and mentoring. He has served as an SPE Production and Facilities Advisory Board Member, former chair of the SPE Flow Assurance Technical Section, and is the current administrative chair of the SPE Methane Management Technical Section.
He holds bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees all in chemical engineering from Anna University, National University of Singapore, and Purdue University, respectively.
Baojiang Sun is a chair professor at China University of Petroleum (East China) (UPC) where he’s worked since 1985. Sun was promoted to professor in 1999 and was awarded the Cheung Kong Scholar Chair Professor in 2009. Previously he served as the Dean of the School of Petroleum Engineering at UPC from 2013 to 2021 and Department Head of Science and Technology Administration at UPC from 2005 to 2010. He has advised 79 master students, 44 PhD students, and eight postdocs. Sun is the founder, faculty advisor, and supporter of the SPE Golden Standard Student Chapter at UPC.
He received the 2024 SPE Northern Asia Pacific Regional Drilling Engineering Award, two National Science and Technology Awards, and a National Teaching Award. Sun has published 400 journal/conference papers and five books. He has also served as editor for 10 journals and committee member of four national professional agencies.
Sun holds a bachelor’s degree from UPC and doctoral degree from Peking University.
SPE Distinguished Service Award
The SPE Distinguished Service Award recognizes exceptional devotion of time, effort, thought, and action to the Society that sets them apart from other contributions.
Subhash Ayirala is a petroleum engineering consultant and currently leads the improved oil recovery team at Saudi Aramco’s EXPEC Advanced Research Center, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, as a focus area champion. His areas of expertise include waterflooding, improved/enhanced oil recovery, produced water management, and CO2 mineralization. He previously worked for Shell E&P and has about 20 years of experience in upstream research and technology deployment.
Ayirala has authored or coauthored 120 technical papers, 85 journal publications, and more than 90 granted/pending patents.
He is a member of SPE Reservoir Advisory Committee and SPE IOR-EOR Terminology Review Committee. He served as executive editor of SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering (2020–2023), executive editor of Elsevier’s Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering (2017–2022), and an SPE Distinguished Lecturer (2021–2022). He received the SPE Outstanding Technical Editor Award 10-times (2008–2021), 2017 SPE A Peer Apart Award, 2019 SPE Middle East and North Africa Regional Service Award, 2020 SPE Distinguished Member Award, 2022 Saudi Aramco Excellence Award, and 2023 SPE Middle East and North Africa Regional Reservoir Description and Dynamics Award.
He holds master’s and PhD degrees in petroleum engineering from Louisiana State University. He also holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemical engineering from Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati, and IIT, Kharagpur, India, respectively.
Tao Yang is a chief professional and senior specialist at Equinor in Norway. He is an elected member of the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences (NTVA) and the Royal Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters. Before his tenure at Equinor, Yang held various positions at Whitson AS, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Yang has served on the Executive Committee of the World CCUS Conference, SPE ATCE Program Committee, SPE EUROPEC Committee, SPE Offshore Europe Program Committee, SPE Complex Reservoir Fluids Workshop Committee, SPE PetroWiki Committee, SPE Data Science and Engineering Analytics Advisory Committee, and SPE Reservoir Advisory Committee. He was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer (2017–2018). He received the 2023 SPE Lester C. Uren Award for Technical Excellence, 2019 SPE Distinguished Member, 2011 SPE North Sea Regional Reservoir Description and Dynamics Award, European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers Alfred Wegener Award, Society of Petrophysicists and Well Log Analysts Distinguished Technical Achievement Award, World Oil Awards, and the NTVA Honorary Award.
Yang holds a BS in chemistry and a PhD in chemical engineering, both from the China University of Petroleum.
Ding Zhu is a professor and holder of the McCain Engineering Endowed Chair in the Petroleum Engineering Department at Texas A&M University.
She received the 2012 SPE Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty, the 2018 SPE Completion and Optimization Technology Award, and has been an SPE Distinguished Member since 2012. She was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer in 2011–2012 and 2018–2019. Zhu has served as chair of the SPE Austin Section, SPE Book Development Committee Chair, and as incoming chair for the SPE Distinguished Lecturer Committee. She has served on technical program committees and session chairs many times for ATCE, HFTC, IPTC, and other conferences and workshops. While serving on the SPE Education Information Committee, she helped to translate Energy4me to two different languages. She has authored more than 200 technical papers and coauthored three textbooks.
She holds a BS degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Science and Technology, Beijing, China, and MS and PhD degrees in petroleum engineering, both from The University of Texas at Austin.
SPE Giovanni Paccaloni Young Professional Service Award
The SPE Giovanni Paccaloni Young Professional Service Award recognizes contributions to and leadership in the public and community arenas and SPE, the profession, and the industry by a member younger than 36.
Edna Michelle Bisso Bi Mba is head of reservoir services at the technology and service center of Harbour Energy. She started her career in 2013 as simulation engineer, then worked as operation reservoir engineer for the Mittelplate & Dieksand asset, Germany’s largest offshore oil field. The mother of two, she is passionate about gender equality and an inclusive work environment. She is co-chair of Wintershall Dea Women’s Network leading an intercultural and interdisciplinary group with the long-term goal to enable activities which will lead to a more equal gender split within the organization at all hierarchical levels.
An SPE member since 2012, she has served at regional and international levels including SPE Germany Section Young Professional Chair, Treasurer, and Chairperson. She is a member of the ACTE Program Subcommittee and Europe Energy Conference Program. She received the 2021 SPE Europe Regional Young Member Outstanding Service Award.
She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Clausthal University of Technology, and a master’s degree in reservoir engineering from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Géologie.
Ibukunoluwa Dagunduro is a reservoir engineer with 6 years of combined professional experience across the oil and gas industry. She currently works as a reservoir engineer with NNPC E&P Limited, a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. Prior to this, she worked as a forensic consultant at KPMG Nigeria.
She has served in various capacities in the SPE Benin City Section including the Young Professionals (YP) Chair, YP Co-Chair, Diversity & Inclusion chair, and Sponsorship Lead for the YP Subcommittee. She also served on the SPE Africa 2024 YP Workshop Committee and the YP Committee for SPE Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition 2024.
She holds a BSc in petroleum engineering from the University of Ibadan.
Chinenye .G. Ezechi is a commercial executive at Trexm Oil and Gas Nigeria Ltd. (Baker Hughes, channel partner), overseeing upstream commercial related activities. She is the founder of Elitar Consult Ltd., a research institute registered under the Federal Republic of Nigeria. With 7 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, she specializes in data analysis, project management, end-to-end supply chain management, engineering design, and research.
She has published four scholarly publications and received the 2024 SPE Africa Regional Public Service Award.
She’s a certified financial modeling valuation analyst, business intelligence and data analyst. She holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Enugu State University of Science and Technology and a mini-MBA from Tekedia Institute, Boston.
Ina Hadziavdic is a business development engineer at Stimstixx Technologies Inc. She held several positions within the SPE Vienna Basin Section including Student Liaison, Section Chair, and Distinguished Lecturer Program Officer. She received the 2022 SPE South, Central, and East Europe Regional Young Professional Service Award. As a resilience trainer, she empowers professionals and young engineers to excel under pressure through tailored programs and workshops. Her commitment to personal and professional growth is evident in her practical approach to managing stress and overcoming adversity.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from the University of Zagreb and a master’s degree in reservoir engineering from Montanuniversität Leoben.
Akos Kiss is a department manager in subsurface optimization at OMV Petrom S.A. in Suplacu de Barcau, Romania. He joined OMV in 2017 and has since worked in Austria, Romania, and specific workover operations in Tunisia and New Zealand. Prior to joining OMV, he worked in Hungary for an engineering design office, PETROLTERV Ltd., dealing with upstream, midstream, and downstream projects.
Kiss received the 2023 SPE South, Central, and East Europe Regional Young Professional Member Outstanding Service Award and the 2023 TWA Energy Influencers Award. He has served as Chairperson of the SPE Vienna Basin Section, serves in the Public Service Award Committee, and in the Young Professionals Committee. He wrote three SPE papers and was the Chairperson of the 2024 SPE Production Optimization in Oil and Gas Assets Workshop in Vienna, Austria.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in earth science from the University of Miskolc, Hungary, and a master’s degree in petroleum engineering from the Mining University Leoben, Austria. He also completed the European geotechnical and environmental course coordinated by Federation of European Mineral Programs.
Ofure Perfection Ugege is a reservoir engineer with Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria where she has worked for the past 5 years, experienced in effective brownfield assets management for consistent value delivery to shareholders and greenfield development. She is a former employee of CypherCrescent Ltd. with over 18 months’ experience as an application support engineer.
She joined SPE as a student member with the University of Benin Student Chapter and later transitioned to a professional member with the Port Harcourt Section. She has served as the Young Professionals Chair of SPE Port Harcourt Section as well as other roles with SPE in the 2021–2022 and subsequent years.
She is the recipient of the 2023 SPE Africa Regional Young Professional Outstanding Service Award, 2023 Ademola Adeyemii-Bero Young Professional Service Award, Nigeria Council, 2022 Young Professional of the Year, Port Harcourt Section, amongst others.
Ugege holds a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from the University of Benin, Nigeria.
SPE/AIME Honorary Member Award
Honorary Membership is the highest honor SPE confers upon an individual. It is limited to 0.1% of SPE’s total membership and is conferred on individuals for outstanding service to SPE or in recognition of distinguished scientific or engineering achievement in fields encompassed in SPE’s technical scope.
Ramona M. Graves is the retired vice provost for international initiatives, the retired dean of the college of earth resource sciences and engineering, and an emeritus professor of petroleum engineering at the Colorado School of Mines. Graves has an extensive background in multidisciplinary reservoir characterization, rock mechanics, environmental issues in petroleum development and production, and high-power-laser rock-fluid interaction. She served on international SPE committees including the SPE Board of Directors as the director of academia from 2018 to 2020. She is a 2009 SPE Distinguished Member and received the 2017 SPE Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty.
She holds a PhD from the Colorado School of Mines. In 2006, she was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Mining University of Leoben, Austria, becoming the first woman to receive this honor in the 166-year history of the university.
Mohan Kelkar is currently chairman and professor at the McDougall School of Petroleum Engineering at The University of Tulsa. His main area of research is in reservoir characterization and modeling. In addition to teaching classes at The University of Tulsa, he has taught more than 300 industry seminars for professionals. He has published more than 70 refereed papers and has made more than 250 technical presentations. He is the author or coauthor of three books including SPE’s Applied Geostatistics for Reservoir Characterization. He is actively involved in SPE and served as general chairman of the 2006 IOR Meeting in Tulsa and as the Mid-Continent North America Regional Director on the SPE International Board from 2010 to 2013.
He received the 2010 SPE Distinguished Membership, 2018 SPE Distinguished Service Award, 2013 Outstanding Petroleum Engineering Faculty Award, 2015 SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Certificate, and was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer (2007–2008).
He holds a BS in chemical engineering from University of Mumbai, India, an MS in petroleum engineering, and a PhD in chemical engineering from University of Pittsburgh.
SPE John Franklin Carll Award for Distinguished Professionals
The John Franklin Carll Award recognizes contributions of technical application and professionalism in petroleum development and recovery.
Christopher R. Clarkson is the Tamaratt Research Professor in transitional energy and the ARC/Ovintiv Chair in subsurface transitional energy pathways in the department of earth, energy, and environment at the University of Calgary. He leads “Tight Oil Consortium” and “Transitional Energy Consortium” focused on advanced reservoir characterization of unconventional reservoirs and subsurface transitional energy pathways, respectively.
Clarkson authored over 150 peer-reviewed journal articles, more than 150 full-length conference papers, three book chapters, and a book, Unconventional Reservoir Rate-Transient Analysis. He has been an active SPE member since 2000 and was an SPE Distinguished Lecturer (2009–2010). He served as an associate editor for SPE Journal from 2015 to 2020 and received the 2020 SPE A Peer Apart Award. Clarkson received the 2005 SPE/AIME Rossiter W. Raymond Award, Alfred Noble Prize (ASCE) in 2005, the 2016 SPE Canada Regional Reservoir Description and Dynamics Award, the 2018 SPE Calgary Section Technical Excellence and Achievement Award, the 2021 SPE Canada Regional Formation Evaluation Award, and the 2022 SPE International Reservoir Dynamics and Description Award.
He is a certified professional engineer with 11 years of industry experience and holds BASc, MASc, and PhD degrees in geological engineering from The University of British Columbia.
SPE Lester C. Uren Award for Technical Excellence
The Lester C. Uren Award recognizes distinguished achievement in petroleum engineering technology by a member who made the contribution before age 45.
Zoya Heidari is a professor in the Hildebrand Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. Before joining UT-Austin, she was an assistant professor at Texas A&M University in College Station from 2011 to 2015. She has been the founder and the director of the UT-Austin Industrial Affiliates Research Program on multiscale rock physics since 2016.
Heidari is the recipient of the 2023 SPE International Formation Evaluation Award, 2021 Society of Petrophysicists and Well Log Analysts (SPWLA) Distinguished Technical Achievement Award, 2020 SPWLA Young Professional Technical Award, 2019 European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers Arie van Weelden Award, 2019 SPE/AIME Rossiter W. Raymond Memorial Award, 2019 SPE Distinguished Membership Award, 2017 SPE Cedric K. Ferguson Medal, 2016 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional and Southwestern North America Regional Formation Evaluation Award, and the 2015 SPE Innovative Teaching Award. She has supervised 33 graduate students and published more than 240 papers. She served as the vice president of education for SPWLA (2016–2018), a member of the SPE Reservoir Advisory Committee, and an executive editor for the SPE Journal.
She holds a PhD in petroleum engineering from UT-Austin.
SPE Public Service Award
The SPE Public Service Award recognizes distinguished public service to a country, state, community, or the public through excellence in leadership, service, or humanitarianism, provided the service is above the requirements of employment.
Abhijeet Anand is the founder and CEO of abCoffee, a coffee chain specializing in “coffee on the go,” with more than 60 outlets across India. Before starting abCoffee, he headed the people division at SLB and spent over 9 years in the international oil and gas industry, where he held roles in operations, tech, sales, strategy management, and finance.
He has authored several technical papers and actively participated in SPE committees. Under his leadership, abCoffee has earned multiple accolades, including the 2023 Most Admired Retailer of the Year and Employer of the Year awards. He is also the founder of Sarthak Mentoring Foundation which has impacted the lives of more than 300 young adults from disadvantaged backgrounds across seven states in India.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from IIT ISM Dhanbad, a diploma in entrepreneurship and business laws, and a master’s degree in political marketing from Rome Business School.
SPE/AIME Robert Earll McConnell Award
The Robert Earll McConnell Award recognizes beneficial service to humanity by engineers through significant contributions that tend to advance a nation’s standard of living or replenish its natural resources base.
Varadarajan Dwarakanath is technical team lead for the chemical recovery mechanisms group in the Chevron Technical Center, a position he has held since 2020. Prior to his current role, he was recovery mechanisms advisor in Chevron North America E&P (2019–2020), team manager of reservoir performance and characterization (2008–2019), and senior reservoir engineer in the Chevron Energy Technology Company (2005–2008). Prior to Chevron he was senior geosystems scientist at INTERA Inc. from 1997 to 2005.
He received the 2024 SPE IOR Pioneer Award, has served in the SPE IOR Technical Committee since 2010, and was technical chair for SPE IOR in 2024. He has served as an executive editor for SPE Journal since 2023. He was recognized as a distinguished member of the department of petroleum engineering at UT-Austin in 2012 and serves on the advisory board for the University of Houston’s department of petroleum engineering. He has coauthored more than 15 peer-reviewed papers, 20 conference publications, and 95 patents during his career.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in mining from IT-BHU, India, and master’s and PhD degrees in petroleum engineering from UT-Austin.
SPE Stephen A. Holditch Visionary Leadership Award
The Stephen A. Holditch Visionary Leadership Award recognizes individuals that have devoted significant time, effort, thought, and action and have demonstrated exceptional visionary leadership resulting in a lasting and momentous impact on the Society of Petroleum Engineers and/or the oil and gas industry.
Ivor Ellul has more than 35 years’ experience in the upstream energy industry, holding various executive positions. Starting his career in design, fabrication, and construction of storage tanks and refinery systems, he specialized in flow modeling executing multiple international studies in single and multiphase pipeline simulation and flow assurance. He has published numerous papers documenting his work in the use of dynamic multiphase models.
Ellul was visiting professor in petroleum engineering at Imperial College, London, and served on the board of the faculty of petroleum engineering of the University of Houston. He served on the board of EV Private Equity and the Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart Board of Trustees. He is chairman of the Pipeline Simulation Interest Group, past chair of the SPE Gulf Coast Section, and Past North America Regional Director of the SPE International Board (September 2018 to February 2019). He is chair of the SPE US Advisory Council.
He holds a BS in mechanical engineering from the University of Malta and master’s and PhD degrees in petroleum engineering from Imperial College. He is a registered chartered engineer in the UK and a professional engineer in Texas.
SPE Technical Awards
These awards recognize outstanding achievements or contributions to the advancement of petroleum engineering in specific technical disciplines.
SPE Completions Optimization and Technology Award
Mary Van Domelen is a senior completions advisor with Well Data Labs. Van Domelen started her career with Halliburton, working in research and operations in the US, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. She has also worked for innovative E&P companies including Maersk Oil, Chesapeake Energy, and Continental Resources. Her global experience resulted in more than 30 technical papers and eight issued patents covering topics from acidizing to fracturing.
An SPE member since 1982, she holds a Lifetime Membership, is a Distinguished Member, and has served as a Distinguished Lecturer (2015–2016 and 2019–2020). She was a cofounder of the North Sea and European Area Stimulation ATW and cofounder of Women in Hydraulic Fracturing, which evolved to become the SPE Hydraulic Fracturing Technical Section. She has served on numerous SPE conferences, workshops, technical and awards committees, as well as holding local section board positions. She is active in the SPE Oklahoma City Section (OKC) as the technical program co-chair for the OKC Oil and Gas Symposium. She is passionate about the importance of mentoring, especially for younger women in the oil and gas industry.
She holds a BS degree in chemical engineering from the University of Oklahoma and is a registered professional engineer in Oklahoma.
SPE Data Science and Engineering Analytics Award
Behnam Jafarpour is an SPE Distinguished Member and a professor at the University of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering, where he leads the subsurface energy and environmental systems lab. He is the director of a recently established national science foundation center for geologic CO2 storage, CO2‑SMART, and holds the Energi Simulation Industrial Research Chair in subsurface energy data science. His research contributions are at the interface of data science and reservoir engineering to develop novel technologies for reservoir description and dynamics that can be used for efficient reservoir development and management.
He has published over 140 technical papers and served on the editorial teams of several journals, including the SPE Journal. He has received various awards including the 2023 SPE Distinguished Member Award, 2021 SPE North America Western Regional Reservoir Description and Dynamics Award, 2017 SPE North America Western Regional Formation Evaluation Award, 2015 SPE North America Western Regional Management and Information Award, 2014 SPE North America Western Regional Distinguished Faculty Award, and 2012 SPE Junior Faculty Research Initiation Award.
He holds PhD and SM degrees in civil and environmental engineering, and electrical engineering and computer science from MIT, respectively.
SPE Drilling Engineering Award
Eric R. Upchurch is a Chevron Fellow and Wells Senior Principal Advisor. He supports Chevron’s global efforts in carbon sequestration, enhanced geothermal energy, and other low-/no-carbon initiatives by providing strategy, technology and project management guidance. He has held numerous engineering, execution, and project management roles globally.
He has authored numerous journal publications covering the fields of petroleum engineering, mechanical engineering, systems dynamics, and fluid mechanics, and holds patents in the areas of drilling rig design and rock fracture mechanics. Upchurch received the 2012 SPE Outstanding Technical Editor Award and has assisted in the planning of many SPE conferences. He received the Chevron Chairman’s Award for his innovations in drilling rig design.
He holds a BS in petroleum engineering from The University of Tulsa, an MS in mechanical engineering from California State University–Long Beach, an MS in renewable energy and sustainability from Pennsylvania State University, and a PhD in aerospace engineering from the University of Southern California. He is a registered professional engineer in Texas and Colorado.
SPE Formation Evaluation Award
Shouxiang Mark Ma is a senior petrophysics consultant at Saudi Aramco in the reservoir description and simulation department, working on business planning and support. Before joining Aramco in 2000, he worked at Exxon Production Research Company, Western Research Institute, Petroleum Recovery Research Center, and Jianghan Petroleum Institute. He is the Society of Petrophysicists and Well Log Analysts (SPWLA) Petrophysics Journal chief editor and SPWLA Board for Publications Member (2024–2026), SPWLA Saudi Chapter VP for technical events (2016–2024), was a JPT formation evaluation editor (2015–2020), SPWLA Director for the Middle East and Africa Region (2018–2020), SPE Formation Evaluation Award Committee Chair (2013), SPE ATCE Formation Evaluation Chair (2018), and IPTC Education Week Co-Chair (2019).
With more than 100 publications and more than 70 patents, Ma was awarded the 2010 SPE‑KSA Technical Contribution Award, 2019 SPE Middle East North Africa Formation Evaluation Award, 2020 SPE Distinguished Membership Award, 2021 SPWLA Distinguished Service Award, and 2022 SPWLA Distinguished Technical Achievement Award.
Ma holds a BSc from China Petroleum University, and MSc and PhD from New Mexico Tech, all in petroleum engineering.
SPE Health, Safety, and Environment Award
Josué E. Maia França is a professor, technician, and engineer with extensive experience in the oil and gas industry. França is currently a safety engineer and human factors consultant at Petrobras, a fellow professor at several Brazilian and Swedish universities, and chair of the SPE Human Factors Technical Section. He also serves as a member of the IOGP Human Performance Committee, treasurer chair of the Resilience Engineering Association, and vice president of ABRISCO. He is the author of more than 40 scientific articles, coauthor of five books, and technical reviewer of eight scientific journals, including OnePetro publications. His work integrates technical expertise and practical experience, emphasizing human performance and process safety, with a focus on enhancing safety and efficiency in the oil and gas industry.
He holds a postdoc in human factors from Linnaeus University, a PhD in civil engineering from Federal Fluminense University, and a master’s in environmental engineering from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Additionally, he is a postgraduate in neurosciences and behavior and sociology and philosophy from Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul.
SPE Production and Operations Award
Liu He works for the Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration and Development (RIPED, CNPC) and is also an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
He has more than 40 years’ experience in the petroleum industry and has served SPE for over 30 years. He received the 2014 SPE Distinguished Membership Award, 2007 North Asia Pacific Regional Production and Operations Award, and 2006 North Asia Pacific Regional Service Award.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in well engineering from Northeast Petroleum University and a DEng from Harbin Engineering University.
SPE Projects, Facilities, and Construction Award
Marc Cahay is offshore R&D coordinator for Technip Energies. Prior to this, he worked for Sofresid Engineering as offshore structural engineer and Caltec/Principia as an offshore structural engineer and structural software developer before joining Technip in 2001.
He has more than 33 years’ experience in fixed and floating structural design. He has authored and coauthored 18 publications on various topics and is the inventor and coinventor of five patents. He received the 2018 SPE South, Central, and East Europe Regional Projects, Facilities, and Construction Award.
SPE Reservoir Description and Dynamics Award
Alexandru (Alex) Turta is a reservoir engineer and president of A T EOR Consulting Inc. He specializes in oil recovery by in-situ combustion (ISC), with specialization in ISC applications. For 12 years, he was involved in the implementation and management of Suplacu de Barcau (Romania) commercial project, the world’s largest ISC project. He has served as an ISC consultant in Asia, America, and Europe. As a United Nations Development Programs expert, he guided the development of Balol and Santhal ISC projects in India and been involved in 16 pilots and eight commercial ISC operations, worldwide.
He launched a website dedicated to the ISC process and authored the ISC chapter in the 2013 Elsevier-published book Enhanced Oil Recovery Field Case Studies. He is the coinventor of the Toe‑To-Heel Air Injection (THAI) process, and catalytic THAI (CAPRI) for heavy-oil recovery and upgrading. In the past 20 years he has worked for the improvement of the THAI process, which to date has been applied in six oil fields located in Canada, China, and India.
SPE Sustainability and Stewardship in the Oil and Gas Industry Award
Linda A. Battalora is a teaching professor in the petroleum engineering department at the Colorado School of Mines. Prior to joining Mines, she served as a petroleum engineer, attorney, and international negotiator for oil and gas project development. She is the Mines Director of TOP Energy Training’s flagship program, TOPCORP. Her research areas include sustainability, health, safety, and environment, and methane emissions management.
She is a past chair of the SPE Sustainable Development Technical Section, SPE Diversity & Inclusion Standing Committee, and is chair-elect of the SPE Methane Emissions Management Technical Section. She is an SPE Distinguished Member and an SPE Distinguished Lecturer (2019–2020). She received the 2019 SPE Rocky Mountain Regional Award for Sustainability and Stewardship in the Oil and Gas Industry, 2015 SPE Rocky Mountain North America Region Distinguished Achievement by Petroleum Engineering Faculty Award, and 2014 SPE Rocky Mountain North America Regional Distinguished Contribution to Petroleum Engineering in Health, Safety, Security, Environment, and Social Responsibility Award.
She holds BS and MS degrees in petroleum engineering and a PhD in environmental science and engineering from Mines, and a law degree from Loyola University New Orleans School of Law.