Sustainable Recovery: The Evolution of SPE’s Membership
Authors: Ben-Naceur Kamel 
Published: June 2022

I appreciate the messages I have received at President@spe.org regarding my column in April. I discussed the proposed merger with AAPG, the lessons learned, and membership feedback. The next SPE Strategic Plan will build on what we learned and a wide participative process, and I look forward to all members’ inputs.
I also commented on the declining number of SPE professional and student members. The main driver in the overall membership decline is the level of employment in our industry, which has taken two significant hits in the past years. The first came during the oversupply period of 2014–2015 (and the subsequent collapse in North American shale activity), and the second during the COVID-induced demand reduction in 2019–2020.
Employment is not a direct function of oil prices, but of upstream and midstream investment/activity. In 2015 there was a 26% decline in upstream expenditures with a slow subsequent increase in 2016–2018. The 2019–2020 decline was the largest relative drop in our industry (more than 30%), leading to another round of staff reductions, especially in the oilfield services industry.
Fluctuations in SPE membership generally lag the activity increase or decrease by 1–2 years (with a buffering effect provided by SPE’s Members in Transition program). It is expected that the current upcycle of activity will contribute to a rebound in membership, especially among the young professionals.
Uncertainties prevail in the oil and gas sector because of the dramatic events happening in Ukraine. SPE’s leadership has responded rapidly, expressing grave concern for those affected by the war and offering support to our Ukraine-based colleagues and their families. SPE has provided financial support through our Poland and Romanian sections to supply food and humanitarian aid, and, where feasible, assist the evacuation of our Ukrainian members and their families. Also, following discussions at our recent SPE Board of Directors meeting, SPE is suspending all conferences and workshops in Russia.
In March, I attended several events in the Middle East including the GAIA Summit and the Oman Petroleum and Energy Show (OPES), both held in Muscat. The GAIA sustainability framework is taking off strongly thanks to the enthusiastic efforts of the SPE volunteers, and the summit was one of the key events of the first Oman Sustainability Week. Its objective was to aid in designing a roadmap for sustainable development in Oman, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Middle East, and North Africa. It was a pleasure to see the combined creative efforts of a diverse team of young professionals from the region. One of the highlights of the GAIA Summit was the original presentation on emission remediation made by 2019 SPE President Darcy Spacy using his trademark accordion.
The OPES conference themed “Shaping the Future of the Energy Industry” was also a large success with more than 350 local and global oil and gas companies and more than 12,000 tradeshow visitors. On 18 March I participated in an event hosted by the Abu Dhabi and the Northern Emirates sections themed “Outlook of the Oil and Gas Industry in the Energy Mix,” held in conjunction with the Dubai World Expo and with a high attendance level.