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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Upstream Technologist

💰 $ - $

🎯 Role Definition

The Upstream Technologist drives technical excellence in upstream oil & gas by applying subsurface and production engineering knowledge, digital tools, and lifecycle technology solutions to optimize well design, reservoir performance, production operations and asset value. This role bridges geoscience, reservoir and production engineering, drilling and digital initiatives (digital oilfield / IoT / SCADA / digital twin) to deliver safe, cost‑effective, and technically robust solutions across field development, well construction and production optimization.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Reservoir Engineer with exposure to simulation and well performance analysis.
  • Production Engineer experienced in surface facilities and optimization.
  • Drilling/Well Engineer or Directional Driller with subsurface integration experience.

Advancement To:

  • Senior/Principal Upstream Technologist
  • Technology Manager / Lead Technologist (Field or Asset)
  • Asset Team Lead / Field Development Manager
  • Director of Technology or Subsurface Excellence

Lateral Moves:

  • Digital Oilfield Specialist / Data Science for Upstream
  • Reservoir Modeler / Simulation Lead
  • Well Intervention or Completions Specialist

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Lead technical evaluation and optimization of field development and well placement by integrating reservoir characterization, seismic interpretation, petrophysics and reservoir simulation to maximize recovery and economic value.
  • Design and review well construction programs (drilling, casing, cementing, completions) with focus on downhole integrity, zonal isolation, and producibility while minimizing non‑productive time and cost overruns.
  • Develop, validate and maintain reservoir models and production forecasts using industry simulators (e.g., Eclipse, CMG, Petrel RE) to support reserves estimation, depletion planning and capital allocation.
  • Provide technical leadership for production optimization projects, applying nodal analysis, inflow/outflow models, artificial lift selection (ESP, gas lift, rod lift), and surface facility constraints to improve uptime and throughput.
  • Collaborate with drilling and directional drilling teams on well trajectory planning, MWD/LWD requirements, and geosteering to ensure optimal reservoir contact and minimize drilling risk.
  • Drive integration of real‑time data streams (SCADA, downhole sensors, MWD, LWD) into operational decision making and automated workflows to support forecasting and anomaly detection.
  • Define and implement digital twin and predictive analytics solutions for wells and facilities, coordinating with data engineers and data scientists to translate physics‑based models into operational tools.
  • Perform technical due diligence and feasibility studies for new technology adoption (e.g., subsea completions, fiber optics, intelligent completions, enhanced oil recovery techniques) and quantify technical and economic impact.
  • Design and oversee well intervention, remedial and workover campaigns to restore or improve well performance based on pressure transient analysis, production logs and reservoir diagnostics.
  • Lead reservoir surveillance programs including pressure transient testing, build and interpretation of production logs, PVT analysis, tracer studies and interference tests to update models and identify optimization opportunities.
  • Provide technical support for HSE, regulatory compliance and well integrity case development, contributing to safe operating envelopes, barrier strategies and lifecycle risk assessments.
  • Prepare technical reports, AFE inputs, cost estimates and risk assessments for capital projects, liaising with commercial and asset teams to align technical options with business objectives.
  • Mentor and train cross‑functional teams, sharing best practices in reservoir engineering, well performance, completions design and digital methods to uplift organizational capability.
  • Coordinate multidisciplinary technical reviews and gate approvals across exploration, development and production phases to ensure robust technical governance and deliverables quality.
  • Implement and maintain standard workflows, templates and technical guidance (SOPs, best practice documents) for model build, well design, production forecasting and technology selection.
  • Conduct sensitivity and uncertainty analyses (Monte Carlo, scenario analysis) to quantify upside/downside and support portfolio prioritization and de‑risking decisions.
  • Lead field trials and pilot projects (e.g., EOR pilots, sand control technologies, smart completions), designing test protocols, metrics and go/no‑go criteria and translating outcomes into scale‑up recommendations.
  • Interface with vendors and technology providers to evaluate tools (simulation software, real‑time analytics platforms, downhole tools), manage acceptance testing and oversee integration into operations.
  • Support M&A and JV technical reviews by assessing asset technical health, production potential, subsurface risks and remediation needs to inform transaction decisions.
  • Troubleshoot complex production and reservoir performance issues using integrated datasets (pressure, rate, chemistry, logs) and recommend tactical and strategic interventions.
  • Drive cost optimization initiatives through well design standardization, performance-based contracting, and continuous improvement of engineering workflows.
  • Lead cross‑disciplinary workshops (failure reviews, learnings capture, lessons learned) following incidents or major projects to close gaps and improve future execution.
  • Ensure data governance and quality by advocating for consistent metadata, validated datasets and provenance tracking to make engineering decisions reproducible and auditable.
  • Champion innovation and continuous improvement by piloting automation, remote operations, and advanced analytics to lower operating costs and increase efficiency.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
  • Assist procurement and contracting teams with technical scope development for supplier tenders and statement of work (SOW) definitions.
  • Provide subject matter expert input for training programs, competency matrices and technical hiring for upstream roles.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Reservoir engineering: reservoir characterization, material balance, pressure transient analysis and reserve estimation using industry methods.
  • Reservoir simulation tools: hands‑on experience with Petrel, Eclipse, CMG, PVTsim, or comparable simulators for dynamic modelling and forecasting.
  • Well performance and production engineering: nodal analysis, multiphase flow modeling, artificial lift design and optimization.
  • Well design and completions engineering: casing and cement design, completion strategies (sand control, frac design, intelligent completions).
  • Drilling and directional drilling integration: trajectory planning, MWD/LWD data interpretation and geosteering collaboration.
  • Data analytics and digital tools: familiarity with Python, MATLAB, R, SQL, and machine learning workflows applied to production and subsurface datasets.
  • Real‑time operations: SCADA, historian systems (OSIsoft PI), streaming data ingestion, alarms and digital twin implementation.
  • Subsea and surface facilities knowledge: flow assurance, manifolds, pipeline hydraulics and topside constraints impacting production.
  • Well integrity and HSE: barrier philosophy, risk assessment methods and regulatory reporting for well lifecycle management.
  • Petrophysics & geoscience workflows: log interpretation, petrophysical modeling, seismic integration and facies mapping.
  • Economic and commercial evaluation: AFE development, NPV/IRR analysis, sensitivity testing and project prioritization.
  • Downhole tools and instrumentation: understanding of sensors, ESP design, fiber optic DAS/DTS and intelligent completion technologies.
  • Software fluency: office productivity, visualization tools (Spotfire, Tableau), and version control/PLM for engineering deliverables.
  • Field diagnostics: production logging, well testing design, and interpretation of diagnostic data to inform intervention decisions.

Soft Skills

  • Strong cross‑functional collaboration with geoscience, drilling, production operations and commercial teams.
  • Effective communicator: able to present technical concepts to non‑technical stakeholders and executive leadership.
  • Problem solver with structured analytical thinking and disciplined decision making under uncertainty.
  • Project leadership: ability to lead pilots, coordinate vendors and manage deliverables across multiple stakeholders.
  • Mentorship and coaching: developing junior engineers and embedding best practices across teams.
  • Adaptability and continuous learning to stay current with new technologies and upstream operating models.
  • Stakeholder management and negotiation skills, especially in joint venture and multi‑partner environments.
  • Attention to detail and high standards for data quality, documentation and auditability.
  • Time management and prioritization for concurrent projects and operational support.
  • Safety and risk awareness with a proactive focus on barrier management and incident prevention.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Geoscience or related engineering discipline.

Preferred Education:

  • Master's degree (MSc) or PhD in Petroleum Engineering, Reservoir Engineering, Geoscience, Applied Data Science or similar; or equivalent professional certifications and demonstrated technical depth.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Petroleum Engineering
  • Reservoir Engineering
  • Geoscience / Geophysics
  • Mechanical / Chemical Engineering
  • Data Science / Applied Mathematics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3–10 years in upstream oil & gas technical roles, with a mix of field and office experience.

Preferred: 5+ years with demonstrable experience in reservoir modeling, well design/completions, production optimization and digital oilfield initiatives. Prior experience with offshore/subsea or complex onshore assets, participation in drilling and well delivery campaigns, and track record of delivering technology pilots to production is highly desirable.

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