Petroleum Project Evaluation: 5-Day Professional Training Course

Course Overview

This comprehensive 5-day training program delivers essential knowledge and practical skills for evaluating petroleum projects from technical and commercial perspectives. Designed for professionals in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Oman, GCC countries, and Africa, this course covers project screening, economic analysis, risk assessment, reserves valuation, and decision-making frameworks essential for optimizing upstream investments and maximizing asset value.

Target Audience

• Petroleum and reservoir engineers

• Project managers and development planners

• Investment analysts and portfolio managers

• Commercial and business development professionals

• Asset managers and strategists

• Financial analysts in oil and gas sector

• Technical professionals from Saudi Aramco, PDO, ADNOC, and African operators

• Government officials evaluating projects

• Consultants and advisors

• M&A specialists and due diligence teams

Day 1: Project Evaluation Fundamentals

Morning Session: Introduction to Project Evaluation

Module 1.1: Evaluation Framework

• Project lifecycle: exploration to decommissioning

• Evaluation objectives and decision gates

• Technical vs. commercial evaluation integration

• Screening, appraisal, and selection criteria

• Multi-disciplinary team approach

• Stage-gate decision-making process

• Portfolio context and strategic fit

• Regional project characteristics: Middle East vs. Africa

Module 1.2: Economic Fundamentals

• Time value of money and discounting

• Cash flow construction and timing

• Revenue streams: oil, gas, condensate, NGLs

• Capital expenditure (CAPEX) components

• Operating expenditure (OPEX) elements

• Working capital requirements

• Abandonment and decommissioning costs

• Tax and fiscal obligations

Afternoon Session: Economic Indicators

Module 1.3: Profitability Metrics

• Net Present Value (NPV): calculation and interpretation

• Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and Modified IRR

• Profitability Index (PI) and ranking projects

• Discounted Profit-to-Investment Ratio (DPIR)

• Payback period: simple and discounted

• Return on Investment (ROI) measures

• Growth Rate of Return (GRR)

• Indicator selection for decision-making

Module 1.4: Economic Limit and Optimization

• Economic limit criteria

• Abandonment timing decisions

• Project life optimization

• Production plateau optimization

• Facilities sizing economics

• Phased development evaluation

• Incremental project analysis

• Saudi Arabia field development optimization

Day 2: Reserves Evaluation and Production Forecasting

Morning Session: Reserves Classification

Module 2.1: Reserves and Resources Framework

• SPE-PRMS classification system

• Proved, probable, possible reserves (1P, 2P, 3P)

• Contingent and prospective resources

• Deterministic vs. probabilistic methods

• P90, P50, P10 reserves interpretation

• Commercial vs. sub-commercial classification

• Reserves maturation pathway

• SEC and international reporting standards

Module 2.2: Reserves Estimation Methods

• Volumetric methods and uncertainty

• Material balance calculations

• Decline curve analysis: Arps equations

• Analogy and type curve methods

• Simulation-based reserves estimation

• Recovery factor determination

• Reserves auditing requirements

• Oman and GCC reserves booking practices

Afternoon Session: Production Forecasting

Module 2.3: Production Profile Development

• Reservoir deliverability analysis

• Well productivity and inflow performance

• Facility constraints and bottlenecks

• Plateau rate determination

• Decline phase forecasting

• Water cut and GOR evolution

• Production optimization strategies

• Artificial lift requirements and timing

Module 2.4: Field Development Planning

• Development concept selection

• Well count and spacing optimization

• Drilling schedule and phasing

• Infrastructure and facilities planning

• Subsea vs. platform economics

• Tie-back vs. standalone development

• Fast-track vs. phased development

• African marginal field development strategies

Day 3: Cost Estimation and Economic Modeling

Morning Session: Cost Estimation

Module 3.1: Capital Cost Estimation

• AACE cost classification: Class 5 to Class 1

• Factored estimates and parametric methods

• Bottom-up detailed estimates

• Drilling and completion costs

• Facilities and infrastructure costs

• Subsea systems and pipelines

• Contingency estimation methods

• Cost escalation and inflation

• Regional cost benchmarking: GCC vs. Africa

Module 3.2: Operating Cost Analysis

• Fixed vs. variable OPEX components

• Production operations costs

• Maintenance and workover costs

• Artificial lift operating costs

• Water handling and disposal

• Personnel and administration

• Utilities and consumables

• Cost per barrel benchmarking

• OPEX reduction strategies

Afternoon Session: Economic Modeling

Module 3.3: Cash Flow Modeling

• Revenue calculation and pricing assumptions

• Gross revenue and royalty deductions

• Cost recovery in PSC frameworks

• Depreciation and amortization

• Tax calculations: income, petroleum, withholding

• Net cash flow after tax

• Discounted cash flow analysis

• Sensitivity to key variables

Module 3.4: Fiscal System Integration

• Concession vs. PSC economic modeling

• Government take calculation

• Contractor entitlement determination

• Bonus payments and timing

• Domestic market obligations (DMO)

• Local content cost impacts

• Fiscal stability provisions

• Multi-country project comparison

Day 4: Risk Analysis and Decision-Making

Morning Session: Risk and Uncertainty

Module 4.1: Risk Identification and Assessment

• Technical risks: geological, drilling, production

• Commercial risks: price, market, fiscal

• Political and regulatory risks

• Environmental and social risks

• Operational and execution risks

• Risk probability and impact matrices

• Risk register development

• Risk mitigation strategies

Module 4.2: Probabilistic Analysis

• Monte Carlo simulation applications

• Input distribution selection

• Correlation between variables

• P90, P50, P10 economic outcomes

• Expected Monetary Value (EMV)

• Probability of commercial success

• Value at Risk (VaR) measures

• Upside potential assessment

Afternoon Session: Decision Analysis

Module 4.3: Sensitivity and Scenario Analysis

• One-way sensitivity analysis

• Tornado diagrams for ranking variables

• Spider plots and breakeven analysis

• Two-way sensitivity tables

• Scenario development: base, low, high

• Price scenario modeling

• Switching values determination

• Kuwait heavy oil project sensitivities

Module 4.4: Decision Trees and Real Options

• Decision tree construction

• Sequential decision modeling

• Value of information analysis

• Real options in petroleum projects

• Flexibility value quantification

• Optimal timing decisions

• Phasing and abandonment options

• Portfolio optimization under uncertainty

Day 5: Special Topics and Practical Applications

Morning Session: Advanced Evaluation Topics

Module 5.1: Enhanced Oil Recovery Projects

• EOR screening and selection

• Incremental recovery estimation

• EOR capital and operating costs

• Pilot project evaluation

• Full-field implementation economics

• CO2 sourcing and costs

• Polymer flooding economics: Oman examples

• Saudi Uthmaniyah CO2 EOR evaluation

Module 5.2: Gas and LNG Projects

• Gas project economic characteristics

• Domestic vs. export gas economics

• LNG value chain evaluation

• Gas-to-power project assessment

• Stranded gas monetization options

• Gas pricing mechanisms impact

• Pipeline vs. LNG economics

• Qatar North Field and Mozambique LNG projects

Afternoon Session: M&A and Portfolio Management

Module 5.3: Asset Valuation and M&A

• Valuation methods: DCF, comparable transactions

• Proved Developed Producing (PDP) valuation

• Undeveloped reserves valuation

• Exploration acreage valuation

• Synergies and integration costs

• Due diligence evaluation process

• Bid strategy and negotiation

• Farm-in/farm-out economics

• ADNOC and African M&A examples

Module 5.4: Portfolio Optimization

• Portfolio screening criteria

• Project ranking and prioritization

• Capital allocation optimization

• Resource constraints integration

• Risk-return portfolio analysis

• High-grading strategies

• Divestment decision framework

• Strategic vs. financial criteria

Module 5.5: Sustainability and Energy Transition

• Carbon pricing impact on projects

• Emissions reduction investment evaluation

• Flare reduction project economics

• CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) integration

• Renewable energy project evaluation

• Hydrogen production economics

• Circular carbon economy projects

• Saudi Vision 2030 aligned investments

Comprehensive Case Studies Workshop

Regional Project Evaluations:

Saudi Arabia:

• Ghawar infill drilling program evaluation

• Jafurah unconventional gas development

• Manifa offshore complex reservoir project

• Shaybah MRC well economics

• Downstream integration project assessment

Oman:

• PDO mature field redevelopment

• Khazzan tight gas project economics

• Mukhaizna heavy oil steam flood

• Block 60 exploration prospect evaluation

• Polymer flooding expansion decision

UAE:

• ADNOC offshore field development

• Upper Zakum expansion project

• Sour gas development economics

• Hail and Ghasha mega-project

• Concession acquisition valuation

Kuwait:

• Greater Burgan horizontal well program

• Heavy oil development concept selection

• Thermal EOR pilot evaluation

• Northern fields development

Qatar:

• North Field expansion economics

• Gas condensate development

• LNG train addition evaluation

• Offshore tie-back project

Africa:

• Nigeria deepwater development: subsea-to-FPSO

• Angola pre-salt exploration prospect

• Egypt Western Desert field redevelopment

• Ghana Jubilee Phase 2 expansion

• Mozambique Area 1 LNG project

• Senegal SNE field development

• Uganda Lake Albert development

• Tanzania offshore gas project

Interactive Workshop Exercises:

• Complete project cash flow model development

• Economic indicator calculations

• Reserves categorization exercise

• Risk-weighted project valuation

• Decision tree analysis

• Portfolio ranking simulation

• Sensitivity analysis workshop

• Comparative fiscal system modeling

• Investment committee presentation role-play

• Group project evaluation and peer review

Learning Outcomes

Participants will master:

• Comprehensive evaluation of petroleum projects

• Economic modeling and cash flow analysis

• Reserves estimation and classification

• Risk assessment and probabilistic methods

• Decision analysis tools and frameworks

• Cost estimation techniques

• Fiscal system integration in evaluations

• Portfolio optimization strategies

• Regional expertise in KSA, Oman, GCC, and African projects

• Software proficiency in evaluation tools

Regional Project Focus

Saudi Arabia: Mega-project evaluation, unconventional economics, MRC well optimization, Vision 2030 integration

Oman: Mature field economics, EOR project evaluation, tight gas development, PDO portfolio optimization

GCC: Offshore development, sour gas economics, gas monetization, concession valuations

Africa: Deepwater projects, marginal fields, frontier exploration, political risk integration, local content impacts

Training Methodology

• Technical lectures with case examples

• Excel-based economic modeling workshops

• Evaluation software demonstrations

• Real project case studies

• Hands-on calculation exercises

• Group evaluation projects

• Investment decision simulations

• Peer presentations and critiques

Duration: 5 days (40 hours)
Delivery: In-person, virtual, or hybrid
Language: English (Arabic support available)
Software: Excel models, evaluation templates
Materials: Case studies, calculation tools, reference guides
Certification: Professional project evaluation certificate

Keywords: petroleum project evaluation training, oil and gas economics KSA, project appraisal Oman, upstream investment GCC, field development economics Africa, NPV IRR calculation, reserves valuation, production forecasting, cost estimation petroleum, Saudi Aramco project analysis, ADNOC investment evaluation, PDO development planning, cash flow modeling, risk analysis upstream, portfolio optimization oil gas