OTC Names 2016 Award Winners

The 2016 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) will honor this year’s Distinguished Achievement Award recipients on Tuesday, 3 May, in Houston.

As part of the OTC Distinguished Achievement Awards Luncheon, the conference will recognize Robert (Don) Vardeman of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation for individual achievement, the Marine Technology Society Dynamic Positioning Committee for institutional achievement, and both George Hirasaki and Yuri Makogon with its Heritage Award.

Founded in 1969, OTC brings together industry leaders and professionals from more than 120 countries. Its large international participation provides excellent opportunities for global sharing of technology, expertise, products, and best practices that address current and future industry conditions. The 2016 event will be held May 2-5 at NRG Park.

Don Vardeman will be honored with the Distinguished Achievement Award for Individuals for his significant leadership and extensive contributions to global deepwater developments. He currently serves as vice president of worldwide project management for Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, which has significant operations in the onshore U.S., Algeria, Mozambique, West Africa, and the Gulf of Mexico.

In 2015, Vardeman celebrated 40 years in the exploration and production field and was elected to the Offshore Energy Center’s Pioneer Hall of Fame. He is a member of Texas A&M University’s Engineering Advisory Council and has served as the Chairman of the OTC Board of Directors.

The Marine Technology Society Dynamic Positioning (DP) Committee will be presented with this award for facilitating incident-free DP operations through sharing of knowledge. Comprised of a committee of dedicated volunteers, it provides vessel owners, operators, marine class societies, engineers, and regulators with valuable tools such as conferences and workshops. In addition, it shares extensive guidance documents covering DP design philosophy, operations, and professional development and has developed a growing set of unique documents called TECHOP, which address specific topics of significant interest and impact. 

The first of two Heritage Awards will be presented to George Hirasaki, who is being recognized for his extensive research on reservoir simulation, enhanced oil recovery, formation evaluation, well logging, and reservoir wettability. Hirasaki enjoyed a 26-year career with Shell before joining the chemical engineering faculty at Rice University in 1993. An active member of the National Academy of Engineers, he has received honors such as the Improved Oil Recovery Pioneer and Society of Core Analysts Technical Achievement Award.

The second Heritage Award recipient, Yuri Makogon, is an expert on gas hydrates and an astute research scholar of the water-gas phase behavior in the Earth’s stratum. He has discovered the existence of tremendous gas reserves in the hydrate form and expanded the knowledge of a number of important new physical gas hydrate properties, plus researched kinetics, morphology, and transformation of hydrate crystals. Makogon has authored 270 scientific papers, 29 patents, and eight books during his work in oil and gas education and research experience, which has spanned nearly six decades. He is also an artist and has created more than 20 paintings.

The OTC Distinguished Achievement Awards Luncheon (formerly known as the Annual OTC Dinner) recognizes the OTC Distinguished Achievement Award recipients, raises funds for a worthy cause, and provides an excellent opportunity for industry leaders to network with colleagues from around the world.