|
Job
overview
With solid positions in the North Sea, Africa,
the Middle East, Asia and the Americas,
the Group's Exploration & Production
sector sustains the growth of production
and reserves at a rate that makes Total
an outstanding achiever in the industry.
Drilling & Well Engineers at Total are
involved in different stages of exploration
and development. In areas established as
exploration targets, their task is to confirm
the presence of hydrocarbons by drilling
exploration wells. When discoveries are
made, they drill delineation wells to define
the dimensions of the find. And for fields
found to be "commercial", they
plan and implement development wells to
recover the oil and gas.
Safety - the safety of the crew and the
installations as well as environmental safety
- is a prime and permanent concern for Drilling
& Well Engineers.
First steps
Junior Drilling Engineers at Total have
several months of on-site training that
includes a few weeks of outside training
with a drilling contractor. After that,
they work as "Rig Engineer" at
one of the Group's subsidiaries with support
and guidance from a confirmed Supervisor.
Career options
Engineers at Total have a wide choice of
career paths ranging from pre-engineering
and reservoir engineering to functions combining
technical and administrative responsibilities
leading to management positions. After acquiring
the experience and expertise necessary,
they may become Department Manager at Head
Office or at one of the Group's major subsidiaries,
or Manager of Operations at one of the exploration
subsidiaries.
There are also opportunities for specialization
as an Expert in one or several disciplines
involved in drilling.
Our recruitment
criteria
Engineering degree from an engineering school
or university (ENSPM/DEG or equivalent is
an advantage).
An assertive personality, team aptitudes,
adaptability, quick synthetic intelligence,
decision-making attributes, a technical
mind open to new technologies.
English, fluent French, another language
is a plus.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Testimonial
Bertrand B. - Age: 27
Drilling & Well Engineer
Degrees from ENSTA and ENSPM.
Joined Total in 2000 after a CSNE* assignment
for Total in Tierra del Fuego (Argentina).
* CSNE = Voluntary International Service
Abroad program for French nationals.
Nicolas D. - Age: 28
Drilling & Well Engineer
Degrees from Ecole des Arts et Métiers
and ENSPM.
Joined Total in 1999 after a CSNE* assignment
for the Group in Oman
* CSNE = Voluntary International Service
Abroad program for French nationals.
What do Drilling
and Well Engineers do ?
Nicolas D. : They make holes! Drilling and
Well Engineers are there in the middle of
all the geophysicists, geologists and reservoir
engineers who calculate the volumes of oil
and gas in the subsurface, and the production
teams. They're more or less the "architects"
of the wells, like you have architects for
buildings. We create the link between the
subsurface and the surface.
Bertrand B. : Our job is to bring the oil
and gas up to the surface. Using all the
data collected and all the parameters of
the particular location, we design and execute
well projects. Knowing where we're starting
from and where we want to go, we also estimate
the time we'll need and the cost of the
well.
In actual practice,
what does that involve ?
ND : A lot of the work is done on the field.
Here at Head Office in Paris, or at our
Center in Pau, we centralize the information
and make sure that we're drilling according
to Group rules, whatever type of well may
be involved - for exploration, delineation,
to assess the size of the field, for development
or production, etc. We also have two departments
for construction and well productivity that
take charge of engineering and assist the
Group's subsidiaries.
BB : For the field crews and the subsidiaries
that direct the contractor doing the drilling,
we provide information about the advancement
of the well and the various techniques being
used. Part of our work is to come up with
technical solutions to maximize efficiency
and minimize drilling costs.
What's a typical
day in your job ?
ND : At the moment it's the cost aspect
Bertrand just mentioned - we're working
on budgets!
BB : Yes, we're analyzing several fields
around the world to estimate cost and time
requirements, and our colleagues at the
subsidiaries refine our estimates. As you
can imagine, drilling is extremely expensive.
An onshore rig may cost "only"
$15,000 per day, but for a drilling barge
for offshore operations, you're looking
at $400,000 per day, and for one well, you
multiply that by at least 5 and up to 300
days.
ND : We're involved in the very early stages
of well projects and the decision-making
process. The studies we carry out may take
anywhere from 3 days to 3 months. We focus
on costs, on the time needed and on technical
difficulties, and our field experience helps
us to come up with realistic estimates.
Our aim is to propose drilling schemes that
are both cost-efficient and technically
innovative, always strictly in compliance
with safety regulations.
What are the upsides
of this profession - what do you like about
it ?
BB: The work is not in the least repetitive.
When you drill ten wells on the same field,
you have surprises waiting for you every
time, and usually bad surprises! But that's
what gets your adrenalin flowing - with
these huge sums at stake, you'd better find
a solution fast! I frankly love this constant
challenge.
ND: What made me come to Total was the aspect
you might call "industrial adventure":
to explore the world to find oil, to discover
other countries, to be right at the center
of the action involving essential economic
stakes… In oil exploration and production,
although a fair amount of work is subcontracted
now, you still find adventure, you can still
be a pioneer. In our job, we also get a
wide-angle view of the different projects,
and interesting contact with many different
suppliers. Another big plus is that the
team atmosphere is excellent.
BB: I'll second that - the atmosphere at
work is terrific.
What are the downsides
- what don't you like about it ?
ND: The only thing I can think of is that
in some countries, living and working conditions
can be difficult, especially when you're
there with your family. It's not obvious
for an expatriate's wife to live in a country
where women don't have equal rights, for
example. The Group is very good at looking
after family members, so that's a big help
- and you of course do your best to get
your family to share your own enthusiasm.
BB: I agree with Nicolas. I'm single, but
even so, there are some areas I don't exactly
dream about as a place to live and work.
Then again, there are always the financial
advantages of expatriation to consider…
What qualities
do you need for this job ?
ND: Above all, you need a curious and inquisitive
mind. More concretely, you must be able
to work well in a team : every project involves
different teams and professions in a coordinated
effort. We work with very heavy equipment,
that's true, but above all, we work with
many different people and cultures. And
you must also really want to commit yourself
to your work.
BB: That's right. This is a profession that's
literally "down to earth", so
you need a practical approach, and you need
intuition and imagination, because you don't
solve everything with mathematical formulas.
I also think a drilling engineer should
want a career with international dimensions,
and see advantages in the work schedules
you have in this job when you're on the
field: four weeks working on site, four
weeks off, for a period of 18 months.
How do you see
your careers developing in the future ?
ND: After working here at Head Office, I'm
planning to take an international assignment
at a subsidiary. Soon I will also need to
focus on a particular area of drilling,
to get the specialized expertise I need
for further development in operations at
a subsidiary or in other Group sectors.
This profession opens access to all other
areas - from technical, financial and legal
professions to jobs related to communications
and human resources. Every individual builds
an individual career path, of course.
BB: In 3 months, my own career path will
be leading to Pau, to learn more about "intelligent"
completion systems used to improve well
productivity. With that specialization under
my belt, I'll work at different subsidiaries
that need this particular expertise. After
that, I don't know yet. As a Drilling and
Well Engineer, specialized or not, you get
better and better through experience, and
for me, that's the job I want to do. But
who knows, one day I may decide to switch
for some other opportunity offered in the
Group.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Testimonial
Anne-Laure TUCHOLSKI
French citizen
Exploration & Production Branch, Luanda,
Angola. Drilling Engineer, Dalia Project.
Earned her Engineering Degree at Ecole Polytechnique
(Paris) and majored in Industrial Organisation
at the Technical University of Catalonia
(Barcelona).
Is currently working on a 12-month IVS (International
Voluntary Service) contract with the Group.
When I finished Ecole Polytechnique, I took
a year off and went to work in Venezuela,
where the challenges facing the oil industry
are really intense. People I met and things
I heard gradually aroused my interest in
the Energy sector in general and in Total
in particular.
Choosing an operational
job.
After that break, I rounded off my training
in a more application-oriented school. I
chose that path because it was a step towards
the corporate world. That’s why I
went for Industrial Organisation, too. I
knew Total was a dynamic, international
company, so that’s where I naturally
applied for my first job.
I had heard about the IVS system, which
is an opportunity to go off and work somewhere
for a year pretty much straight away. So
I applied for a drilling vacancy I had found
on the Group’s recruitment website.
IVS jobs and recruitment.
A recruitment consultant called me up for
an interview, and then I had three half-hour
interviews with operational staff and a
career manager at Total’s Main Office.
Those interviews gave me a clearer picture
of the Group, of what Total expects of its
staff on IVS contracts, and of drilling
operations. Basically I had no training
in the oil industry but had to be operational
fast.
They green-lighted my application in mid-May
and told me I would be leaving in early
September. That was when they told me I’d
be going to Angola. Black Africa was new
to me; I had only ever been to North Africa.
No such thing as
a routine.
Everything went really smoothly when I got
there. The Group had taken care of the reception,
accommodation, travel and so on.
Professionally, it was a big discovery too.
And I’m still learning all the time.
It’s a very operational job –
which is exactly what I wanted.
The fact that I’m one of the few women
(among the 20-odd staff in the Drilling
Office in Luanda and among the 140 staff
on the drilling ship) means I get some preferential
treatment. The downside is that I feel I
have to do more to prove myself, lest they
lapse into paternalistic mode.
It’s been nearly five months now.
I feel drilling was the right choice, and
I hope I can stay in this line of work.
There is no such thing as a routine, even
though I work as a resident (i.e. not alternating
spells on the site and spells on leave).
I go to the well, take care of the budgets
and schedules, and nobody has any problem
trusting me. I’m going to work on
a new campaign, which will involve opening
up 70 wells, the Dalia project.
The right profile.
I can only encourage other young graduates
to jump at an experience like this. Total
took me on because I had an international
and mobile background (the time in Venezuela
and Spain added up to nearly three years
outside France). And I think the fact that
I was eager to learn, a cupful of humility
and a lot of curiosity helped me fit in.
But actually I do have one complaint: a
year isn’t long enough!
|
