Brief Overview: Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE KU) Chapter
The Society of Petroleum Engineers Kenyatta Universty (SPE KU) Chapter was established in March 2016 to represent petroleum engineering and other students of related fields as well as exposing its members(students) to the industry.
SPE KU delivers this objective by creating a platform where engineering students can connect with the Oil and Gas industry through field trips, industrial attachments and internships, acquiring materials and necessary skills supplementary to our learning Create interest in Petroleum Engineering in Kenya and by promoting student interactions especially to attract high school students to the profession.
SPE KU members during a recent visit to Tullow Oil offices, Nairobi
The SPE KU SC has been engaging in a number of talks to introduce its members to the industry players and secure partnerships for the benefit of its members. Some of the organizations it has met include; PIEA (Petroleum Institute of East Africa), KOGA (Kenya Oil and Gas Association) as well as the SPE Nairobi Section.
“We continue to engage other key industry stake holders, and is willing to listen to and partner with organizations that share our vision,” says SPE KU chapter president President – John Mwakio.
On the High School Outreach Programme members have already visited: Murang’a High School, Bethlehem Academy and Moi Girls’ School, Nairobi.
The High School Outreach Programme places an emphasis on mathematics, with the high school students sitting a specially set paper to help them identify weaknesses. The papers are then marked, and the students then advised and given tips on how best to improve on these areas. The KU SPE SC members then proceed to advice the students on university course selections, preparation for KCSE, university life, motivation and mentorship.
KU SPE SC has a number of upcoming activities it is currently planning:
- Petroquiz – Based on SPE’s Petrobowl, this is a student activity where students will battle it out, to show who is the most informed on both technical and non-technical oil and gas issues. Tentative date is Thursday 6th, October 2016.
- Petroseminar – This entails bringing a diverse number of industry professionals, to talk to the members on technical and non – technical topics.
- Field trips – trips to a number of companies are being planned, for members to see equipment and actual day to day operations.
Kenya’s initial assessment estimate of crude oil recoverable resources is at 750 million barrels following the last concluded exploration and appraisal drilling up from 600 million barrels earlier.
Additional Information:
Society of Petroleum Engineers(SPE) is the largest individual-member organization serving managers, engineers, scientists and other professionals worldwide in the upstream segment of the oil and gas industry, with over 168, 000 members in 144 countries, 68, 000members being students. Professionals are associated to the society through sections. In Kenya there is only one section, that is the Nairobi section.