At the forefront of the energy sector
WITH the upturn in the global oil and gas (O&G) industry, Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) has seen renewed interest in its petroleum engineering programmes from potential students in Malaysia and abroad.
Curtin Malaysia offers the specialised four-year Bachelor of Engineering in Petroleum Engineering (Honours) degree developed in collaboration with global players such as Chevron, Woodside, Shell, BHP Billiton and BP.
Introduced in 2011, it has been further refined to meet the needs of the national O&G sector with the involvement of related companies operating in Sarawak such as Petronas Carigali, Shell, Nippon Oil, Murphy Oil, Schlumberger and Talisman.
Curtin Malaysia also offers the Master of Petroleum Engineering by coursework that can be completed in 18 months of full-time study.
The university’s pro vice-chancellor, president and chief executive professor Jim Mienczakowski said despite the global oil glut, student numbers for the programme have remained constant in the last few years.
With the industry on the road to recovery, enrolment is again on an upward trend.
Prof Mienczakowski also said the International Energy Agency has reported that South-East Asian nations are expected to approve development of 50 oil and gas fields through 2020, making the region a new heavyweight in global energy.
According to the report, the 10 Asean nations represent one of the most dynamic parts of the global energy system and their energy demand has grown by 60% over the past 15 years.
There has been strong growth in energy, but increased energy needs lead to rising consumption of all fuels. Oil demand is expected to rise from 4.7 million barrels per day today to around 6.6 million barrels in 2040.
Demand for natural gas will also grow by around 60% to 2040, due to rising consumption in power generation and industry.
“The future of energy consumption still lies in natural fuels, at least for the next 40 to 50 years,” said Prof Mienczakowski, adding that petroleum engineering will still be at the forefront of the energy sector for the foreseeable future.
Prof Mienczakowski (pic) said that according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2016, the estimated years of oil, natural gas and coal production left (based on known reserves and production levels in 2015) are 50 years for oil, 52 years for natural gas and 114 years for coal.
This is good news for Malaysia, which has the largest oil and gas reserves in Asean, he added.
Enrolment for Curtin Malaysia’s July/August (Semester 2) intake is now in progress with undergraduate programmes set to commence on July 30, followed by foundation programmes on Aug 13.
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