IMAGE ’23 brings together global geoscience community

Now in its third year of bringing together the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) and the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) to hold joint annual meetings, IMAGE ‘23 has become a powerful combination, hosting one of the largest gatherings of geoscience professionals in the world.

The International Meeting for Applied Geoscience and Energy (IMAGE ’23) took place in Houston, August 28-Sept. 1, with an expanded program addressing the interests of geoscientists in a rapidly changing energy landscape. The conference promised something for everyone, and with nearly 200 sessions and more than 1,000 presentations, it did not disappoint.

Aramco’s presence represented a record-breaking year for the company contributing more than 60 technical papers, poster presentations, and post conference workshops illustrating the company’s leadership in geosciences with advancements in emerging geology topics such as the application of machine learning and digital transformation.

Contributing to the success of this year’s conference by serving on key conference committees were: Aiman Bakhorji, Director, Geophysical Imaging, Aramco, AAPG Technical Program Co-Chair; Mukarram Ahmed, AAPG Technical Program Co-Vice Chair; Gretchen Gillis, Geologist, Aramco Americas, chair for the Image ’23 Oversight Committee; and Meredith Faber, Geologist, Aramco Americas, Image ’23 Strategic Panels Co-Chair.

The technical sessions were complemented by eight strategic panels representing an opportunity to connect thought leaders with the broader geoscience community, generating dialogue around topics critical to the future of energy.

Attendees flocked to Aramco’s exhibition booth for daily presentations and demonstrations from Aramco Americas R&D subject matter experts with updates to our geosciences modeling software Flowtrack, advances in geomechanics, and study of underground gas storage and its implications for the energy transition.

Organizers saw an increase in attendance this year with an estimated 7,000 participants. The two organizations host the event in conjunction with the Society of Sedimentary Geology.

Vladimir Kazei receives SEG Award

Among the Aramco professionals honored by the Society of Exploration Geophysicists during IMAGE ’23 was Aramco Americas researcher Vladimir Kazei for his outstanding contributions to geophysics and to the Society.

The J. Clarence Karcher Award was given to Vladimir Kazei, Geophysicist, Artificial Intelligence Team, Aramco Americas, Aramco Research Center-Houston for his outstanding ability to contribute to the science and technology of exploration geophysics as a young geophysicist.  

He was selected for his substantial contributions to seismic inversion using artificial intelligence and machine learning methods. His work in mapping multiple common-midpoint gathers of raw field data into depth-domain vertical velocity profiles was characterized as groundbreaking.

“I am deeply grateful to my colleagues, collaborators, and friends who nominated and supported me in the achievements that led to this big milestone in my career,” said Kazei.

Kazei has chaired SEG technical sessions, co-organized distributed acoustic sensing workshops, co-edited a special section in SEG’s journal Geophysics, served as a guest editor of The Leading Edge, and is a consistent reviewer for Geophysics. He has published more than 10 journal articles which have received more than 700 citations.

For decades Aramco geoscientists have been members of SEG for its commitment to knowledge-sharing and advancement of geophysics. The global society has more than 10,000 members and is headquartered in Houston, TX with regional offices in Tulsa, OK, and offices in Dubai, UAE; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Beijing, China.