The consignment of the certificate of participation from the 2024 International Petroleum Technology Conference (IPTC) Education Week to Samuel Zagota (center). 

ITS Campus, ITS News – A student from the Marine System Engineering, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), became the only ITS representative at the 2024 International Petroleum Technology Conference (IPTC) Education Week. After competing with thousands of applicants, Samuel Zagota managed to become part of the 100 students from around the world who participated in the international conference. 

IPTC is an international oil and gas conference which this year was held on February 10-15 in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Proposing Shaping the Future of Energy as the theme of the conference, the conference focused on giving students exposure to the oil and gas industry. “During the five days, other participants and I were required to actively participate in discussions, solving cases, and exchanging insights with experts,” said Zagota. 

Samuel Zagota (the rightmost) with the team from various countries.

This student continued, and the participants were also allowed to visit world-class oil and gas companies located in the Dhahran Techno Valley (DTV) research institution. These companies are Air Products, Baker Hughes, and NESR, as well as King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. “We learned various innovations that are developing in the oil and gas industry, especially the application of artificial intelligence,” he added.

Zagota explained that the 100 participants from 33 countries were divided into 14 groups to complete a case study challenge given by Schlumberger. In the case study, participants were challenged to come up with ideas to increase oil and gas production by drilling new wells based on available geological data. “To develop these ideas, we were facilitated to use Schlumberger’s software,” he added.

Samuel Zagota (the third from right) receives his award after achieving the third place of the case study competition. In completing the case study, Zagota worked with six other participants from Mexico, Argentina, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, and Azerbaijan. By having a good teamwork, Zagota and his team managed to analyze suitable locations for drilling new oil and gas wells. “By looking at the assessment based on the largest investment value, our team successfully got the third place,” Zagota added.

Participated by students with various backgrounds such as Chemical Engineering, Geology, Geophysics, Petroleum, and Machinery, the student who currently serves as the President of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) ITS SC revealed that he was the only participant with marine background. Even so, his long experience of being involved in oil and gas organizations and competitions he has participated in, helped him to be able to discuss with other participants. (*)

Reporter: Tyara Novia Andhin
Editor: Fauzan Fakhrizal Azmi