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Among the delegates was Ron Clarke, who has joined the HFI Consulting International network as an international business development consultant. Based in Houston, Ron has over 30 years of experience in the energy extraction sector and has been at the helm of many globally successful ventures.

As well as co-founding Precision Tube Technology, he launched Coiled Tube Resource Management. He’s also a past chairman of the International Coiled Tubing Association and has a real gift for identifying technology and solutions that will have a significant impact on the energy sector.

“The thing which stood out for me more than anything else at this conference was the development of real time monitoring. Oil and gas extraction is a round-the-clock operation, and this scale of downhole monitoring allows us to know exactly what is going on underground at any given time.

“It was clear that there has been a huge amount of R&D undertaken in this field in recent times, and the development of fibre optic real time data is going to be critical in showing exactly what is taking place within the well and how it will impact on production,” explained Ron.

_{Ronald Clark of Coiled Tube Resource Management is the latest member to join HFI's Bridgehead Energy Consultants}

He was also impressed with the attention given to the key themes of sustainability, efficiency and responsible oil production. Ron noted real progress on ecological awareness and solutions to address sustainability – as well as development of other energy sources.

It was perhaps no great surprise then that Saudi Aramco was extremely visible at the conference given Saudi Arabia’s major investments in alternative energy, including up to US$50bn a year for nuclear and renewables, and a separate funding tranche for water.

The 2030 Economic Vision National Transformation Plan and the In-Kingdom Total Value Add programme is entirely focused on diversifying the nation’s economy, and there are now more opportunities than ever before for joint ventures and partnerships.

Ron added: “One of the keynote speakers on the themes of sustainable oil and gas was Khaled Al-Buraik, vice president of southern area oil operations for Saudi Aramco. He is a permanent member of the KSA delegation to the World Petroleum Congress, so this event attracted high-level delegates.

“The Kuwait Oil Company was also here in force, and to me at least, it seemed that the Middle East had the strongest presence at the event. I believe they would have been very interested in the technology showcase, and how it could be utilised in that region.”

Both HFI managing partner Hugh Fraser and international business development consultant Graham Berry are also long-standing members of SPE and members of the HFI team have previously attended SPE annual conferences in Dubai and Amsterdam.

Hugh said: “We appreciate the value of being members of SPE as their events, such as this one in San Antonio, are key to our understanding of the latest technology and how it can be utilised and positioned within international markets.

“Having attended the annual conference of EAGE – SPE’s Netherlands-based sister organisation – in Paris earlier this year – I know how important these events are in helping to develop our technology know-how.”

ATCE was the second US event in as many weeks attended by HFI Consulting International. Hugh participated in EIC Connect in Houston at the start of October, and said it was another useful event to make connections and be informed of market intelligence.

“EIC events take place all over the world, and I am in no doubt that delegates who attended the Houston event will have fully recognised its value. I certainly hope that EIC Connect USA will grow in future years, bringing benefits to all those who attend,” he added.