Energy Workforce Hosts State Department Officers

Energy Workforce & Technology Council’s esteemed State Department Houston Energy Course kicked off in August with a highly anticipated return to in-person training sessions.

Twenty-seven U.S. foreign and civil service officers stationed in 14 countries traveled to Houston to participate in an immersive look at the oil and gas industry from all sectors and angles of the value chain. This was the return of the first in-person course after two years of virtual programs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Students in this session of the program had the opportunity to hear presentations from industry and subject matter experts from Baker Institute at Rice University, Baker Hughes, Baker Botts, BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exterran, GaffneyCline, Halliburton, HMH, New Climate Ventures, NOV, Schlumberger, TechnipFMC, Veriten, Weatherford and the Bureau of Energy Resources, U.S. Department of State.

Participants engaged in question and answer sessions with company representatives about topics such as the global role of the energy industry, the future of energy, exploration, business development, technical aspects of drilling and constructing a well, onshore and offshore issues, midstream and downstream topics, and technologies being developed and deployed.

This in-depth overview of the energy industry helps the FSOs make informed energy policy decisions at their respective international posts, and builds lasting relationships between the students and industry experts.

Energy Workforce founded the training program 29 years ago to educate global energy influencers on the innovations and business dynamics of the energy industry. The program strengthens relationships between industry and U.S. interests abroad and promotes better-informed decisions at embassy posts around the world.

The next session takes place in January 2023.