CX: Unconventional Hydrocarbon Resources

Taqeem · January 4, 2025, 11:23pm

Unconventional Hydrocarbon Resources Concentration Program

Overview / نظرة عامة

This program is multidisciplinary, aiming to equip the students with the necessary skills to understand and develop unconventional hydrocarbon resources. Advancement in technologies, including horizontal drilling and multistage hydraulic fracturing, made it possible to extract these resources with commercial quantities. The Kingdoms goal of increasing gas production depends heavily on developing these resources using the state-of-the-art technologies.

Students choosing this concentration will acquire the necessary background to identify and characterize unconventional resources using geological and petrophysical tools. They will learn the flow behavior of unconventional gas and oil resources at the nanoscale level, including gas adsorption and diffusion mechanisms. They will also be able to design recovery strategies, including fracture jobs and artificial lift methods, and assess their performance. The students should be able to evaluate the production potential, decline curves, and economic value of these resources.

هذا التخصص يهدف إلى تزويد الطلاب بالمهارات اللازمة لفهم وتطوير موارد الهيدروكربونات غير التقليدية. أدى التقدم في التقنيات، بما في ذلك الحفر الأفقي والتكسير الهيدروليكي متعدد المراحل، إلى إمكانية استخراج هذه الموارد بكميات تجارية. ويعتمد هدف المملكة في زيادة إنتاج الغاز بشكل كبير على تطوير هذه الموارد باستخدام أحدث التقنيات.

سيكتسب الطلاب الذين يختارون هذا التخصص الخلفية اللازمة لتحديد وتوصيف الموارد غير التقليدية باستخدام الأدوات الجيولوجية والبتروفيزيائية. سيتعلمون سلوك تدفق موارد الغاز والنفط غير التقليدية على المستوى النانوي، بما في ذلك آليات الامتزاز والانتشار للغاز. كما سيتمكنون من تصميم استراتيجيات الاستخلاص، بما في ذلك عمليات التكسير وطرق الرفع الصناعي، وتقييم أدائها. ويجب أن يكون الطلاب قادرين على تقييم إمكانات الإنتاج ومنحنيات الانخفاض والقيمة الاقتصادية لهذه الموارد.

Application for the Concentration Program

Eligibility Criteria

Requirements:

Minimum GPA of 2.0 is required for all BSc KFUPM students.
Students with applied major cannot enroll in concentrations.
Students who completed (79 – 115 hours).
Students who finished all junior-level courses of the specific majors are eligible to enroll in the concentration after completing the prerequisites.

Timeline:

Applications open at the end of the first semester of the Junior year ( around November ) till the middle of the following semester ( around February)
Applications are reviewed at the end of the second semester or early summer.

Hosting Department:

Petroleum Engineering

For more information about concentration programs, visit the general information page.

To apply for the concentration program, please visit the official application page provided by the university.

Offered To:

Major	Pre/Co-requisites	Notes
Petroleum Engineering (PETE)	PETE 301 or PETE 330	-

Courses in the Concentration

Course	Course Title	Brief Description	Pre-requisites	Instructors	Average GPA	Notes
GEOL 470	Geology of Unconventional Reservoirs	The course covers geology and properties of unconventional petroleum systems in Saudi Arabia.		Dr. Korhan Ayranci	-	-
PETE 471	Introduction to Unconventional Resources	The course covers unconventional resources, fluid flow, drilling, and artificial lift.	PETE 301 or PETE 330	Dr. Guenther Glatz, Dr. Amjed Mohammed Hassan, Dr. Talal Al Shafloot
PETE 472	Unconventional Resources Stimulation	The course covers hydraulic fracture design, fracture fluid chemistry, field diagnostics, and acid fracturing.	PETE 471	Dr. Murtada Al-Jawad
PETE 473	Unconventional Resources Evaluation	The course covers unconventional reservoirs, reserve estimation, and AI applications.	PETE 471 and GEOL 470	Dr. Sulaiman A. Alarifi

Semester	Course 1	Course 2
First Semester (Fall)	GEOL 470	PETE 471
Second Semester (Spring)	PETE 472	PETE 473

Special Benefits

Hands-on Experience:
Industry Relevance:
Additional Courses/ Short Courses/ Professional Certifications Taken or Obtained Through the Program:
Expos/ Conferences/ Competitions for individuals involved in the program:
Softwares and Applications Utilized:
Other Benefits:

Resources

For courses’ study materials click here

Instructors

Photo	Name	Courses	Office Number	Email	Telephone	Office Hours	Department	Specialization	Taqeem Post	Coordinator
Dr. Murtada Al-Jawad720×720 130 KB	Dr. Murtada Al-Jawad	PETE 472	Building 76 Room 1256	mjawad@kfupm.edu.sa	966-13-860 2688	-	Petroleum Engineering	Productivity enhancement	Taqeem Post	Program Coordinator
Dr. Sulaiman A. Alarifi240×240 14 KB	Dr. Sulaiman A. Alarifi	PETE 473	Building 76 Room 2171	salarifi@kfupm.edu.sa	966-13-860 8716	-	Petroleum Engineering	Development of unconventional reservoirs	Taqeem Post
Dr. Talal Al Shafloot240×240 8.1 KB	Dr. Talal Al Shafloot	PETE 471	Building 76 Room 2145	shafloot@kfupm.edu.sa	966-13-860 2159	-	Petroleum Engineering	Reservoir Geomechanics (conventional and unconventional)	Taqeem Post
Dr. Korhan Ayranci240×240 42.1 KB	Dr. Korhan Ayranci	GEOL 470	Building 76 Room 2159	korhan.ayranci@kfupm.edu.sa	966-13-860 2698	-	Geosciences	Sedimentological and ichnological characterization of deep- and shallow-water deltaic settings	Taqeem Post
	Dr. Guenther Glatz	PETE 471	Building - Room -	-	966-13-860 -	-	-	Geochemical Modeling
Dr. Amjed Mohammed Hassan240×240 7.66 KB	Dr. Amjed Mohammed Hassan	PETE 471	Building 76 Room 2031	amjed.mohammed@kfupm.edu.sa	966-13-860 7444	-	CIPR	Unconventional resources development	—