Judges have selected 16 technologies that have demonstrated engineering excellence in the upstream energy industry to receive Hart Energy’s E&P 2025 Meritorious Engineering Awards (MEA) for Innovation.
The annual MEA program highlights new products and technologies that exhibit innovations in concept, design and application.
The panel of judges included engineers and scientists from operating and consulting companies worldwide. Judges were excluded from categories in which they or their companies have a business interest.
Artificial Lift
Summit ESP, a Halliburton service
Product: TrueSync hybrid permanent magnet motor
Production engineers face the challenge of maximizing efficient oil output from highly variable wells. They need adaptable electric submersible pump (ESP) systems that can handle dynamic well conditions.
Summit ESP’s TrueSync oilfield motor combines the robust design of a standard induction motor with the high efficiency of a permanent magnet motor (PMM). Traditional PMMs struggle in dynamic well environments because they have trouble synchronizing with surface motor controllers. TrueSync utilizes unique electrical damping features that enable it to ride through transient production cycles, such as large gas slugs or low flow conditions, maintaining correct motor rotor positions and ensuring reliable operation.
Carbon Management
Encino Environmental Services
Product: Enviromech composite thief hatch
Storage tanks at oil and gas production sites have been identified as a significant source of methane and volatile organic compound emissions. A main contributor to these emissions is faulty or degraded thief hatches—the closeable lids at the top of low-pressure holding tanks used to store hydrocarbons.
Enviromech is a composite system that resists corrosion and oxidation better than traditional materials. It reduces emissions as well as accident risk.
Digital Oilfield
PrePad
Product: Completions module
PrePad is a cloud-based software platform that transforms how operators plan and execute unconventional well projects. By incorporating the industry’s first completion process simulator, PrePad provides the industry with a revolutionary approach to discovering the optimal trade-off among production, cost, cycle time, emissions and risk. Every dollar and every minute of every pad can be estimated and explained.
Instead of spreadsheets, PrePad offers a universal completions simulation model that quantifies any scenario based on key variables. It uses a combination of logical, first-principles physics, discrete-event and economic models.
Drill Bits
SLB
Product: DualHelix
As modern drilling pushes for greater distances at faster rates, advanced drill bits are essential. These bits must endure longer intervals and tackle tough formations and rock strengths, all while maintaining durability in a wider range of conditions.
SLB’s DualHelix multiformation performance bit improves drilling efficiencies through placement of shaped blades to better engage in the rock according to the depth of cut. With its geometry-derived depth of cut difference between primary and secondary blades, the DualHelix is independent of weight-on-bit, enabling it to deliver ultimate performance in soft and hard formations.
In a test in North Dakota, the DualHelix resulted in an improved ROP of 15% and a reduction in drilling hours.
Drilling Fluids/Stimulation
Johnson Specialty Tools
Product: AquaShear premix technology
AquaShear mixing units, introduced in 2024, enable improved mixing, blending and shearing of fluids. Its innovative design uses opposing streams to produce fast and thorough mixing and hydration. It reduces volume loss, eliminates dust, allows the introduction of powders into solvent liquids without using a slurry and reduces sludge buildup in tanks, which saves cleanout time.
In a series of tests against a competitor, the AquaShear unit mixed bentonite at double the rate of the other mixer, saving 15%-20% in material use and rig time.
Drilling Systems
Aramco Services
Product: Mudfork
It’s critical to know the viscosity and density of drilling fluids to maintain a safe, efficient operation. These properties are typically measured manually, with samples taken on a regular basis.
The Mudfork viscometer is a fully automated system capable of continuous monitoring of viscosity, density and temperature of drilling muds. The system is portable and robust enough to be deployed at different points of the mud circulation system. It is also cost-efficient for deployment of multiple units at a single rig.
On five rigs in Saudi Arabia, the Mudfork successfully measured density, viscosity and temperature of drilling fluids in real-time throughout an entire drilling campaign. In one test, data from 20 minutes before a lost circulation event showed a distinct decrease in viscosity and density. The ability to identify such anomalies can be an asset in providing early warning for problems such as reservoir fluid invasion, gas kicks and stuck pipe.
IOR/EOR/Remediation
Saudi Aramco
Product: Magnetic fluids
Saudi Aramco developed six applications for magnetic fluids: enhanced oil recovery, in situ valve for fluid diversion, heavy oil recovery, high-permeability thief zone management, low-permeability shale invasion and solids mobilization to remediate damage.
The work’s promising results included increased oil production and reduced environmental impact.
Exploration/Geoscience
Halliburton
Product: EarthStar 3DX Horizon
The EarthStar 3DX Horizon three-dimensional look-ahead resistivity service redefines subsurface visibility in horizontal drilling. It provides real-time, forward-looking geological 3D insights in horizontal wells before they are penetrated up to 50 feet ahead of the bit. This allows operators to anticipate formation changes, enhance well placement and maximize asset value.
The result is improved net-to-gross ratios, enhanced drilling efficiency, and a reduction in costly non-productive time.
HSE
Expro Group
Product: Spring Anti-Rotation Key
Spring anti-rotation keys are used in casing strings to increase breakout resistance and reduce the chance of dropped casing strings. Expro pre-installed the spring ARK at the manufacturing facility, eliminating the need for people to install a traditional key on the rig floor. This reduces make-up time as there is no need to install a device by hand in the red zone.
Unlike traditional keys, these self-engaging keys reduce personnel on board and increase breakout resistance. They improve crew safety by eliminating the need for dedicated thread representatives in the red zone and reduce the possibility of dropped objects.
Hydraulic Fracturing/Pressure Pumping
CNPC
Product: UltraFrac HT frac fluid
UltraFrac Fluid is specifically designed for wells with temperatures up to 230 C. The fluid uses a synthetic polymer as the jelling agent in combination with a zirconium crosslinker and three additives—a pH buffer, a crosslinking delay agent and a temperature stabilizer. The three additives work together to significantly extend the thermal stability of the fluid. When fully broken, the fluid turns into water-thin liquid without any solid residues, making the fracture cleanup easy and more effective.
The fluid has been successfully applied in 15 well treatments across deep and ultra-deep reservoirs in the Qinghai, Daqing and Tuha oil fields in China, with a cumulative fluid volume exceeding 20,000 cu. m and an operation success rate of 100%. Key performance metrics include an average friction-reduction rate exceeding 72% and the establishment of multiple domestic records for fracturing operations at 230 C (446 F), including largest-scale fracturing operation, highest pumping rate and maximum proppant volume.
Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence
Halliburton
Product: Octiv Auto Frac
An industrywide challenge is the lack of control over frac job consistency, leading to variability and reduced performance.
The Octiv Auto Frac service is designed to deliver consistency in fracture execution. Operators use it to configure the automation settings for each fracture stage and the system executes those decisions through control of the entire frac spread. The system constantly references the base frac design, automation settings and real-time data to control the frac execution each second.
In a job with Coterra Energy, Octiv Auto Frac provided intelligent control, allowing Coterra to leverage automation for consistent frac stages, enhancing operational efficiency and consistency. Coterra adopted this technology across all its frac crews, becoming the first E&P to adopt autonomous fracturing across their entire program.
Non-Fracturing Completions
Halliburton
Product: FlexRite selective access multilateral completion system
North Sea offshore oil and gas operators face complex challenges to production attributed to the age of the reservoirs, potential harsh environmental conditions, depletion of conventional reservoirs, stranded reserves and difficulties accessing multiple zones efficiently. To address these challenges, multilateral well configurations emerged as an innovative solution to enhance hydrocarbon recovery.
The Halliburton FlexRite SA multilateral completion system was developed based on the field-proven FlexRite multilateral completion system deployed in the North Sea for more than 25 years. A multilateral junction, installed as an integral part of the production string, seals and isolates the multilateral window from production or stimulation pressure. The junction delivers industry-leading pressure ratings and selective access to each lateral, enabling lateral wellbores to be stimulated through the completion string.
Multilateral well stimulation in the North Sea resulted in significant efficiency gains and reduced environmental impact. This technique enabled enhanced resource recovery and offered a more sustainable and cost-effective approach to manage complex reservoir challenges in the North Sea.
Onshore Rigs
SLB
Product: DrillSync
SLB developed the DrillSync automated controls platform to meet the need for a seamless integration of today’s advanced control capabilities with existing drilling equipment. By providing real-time data and feedback to drillers, the platform ensures optimized operations and proactive problem-solving.
DrillSync has brought significant economic benefits to the industry, including up to 20% improved drilling performance, 15% reduced costs and 50% enhanced safety. By automating routine tasks and reducing manual intervention, the DrillSync platform lowers labor costs and boosts productivity.
Water Management
Tetra
Product: Oasis total desalination solution
Tetra Oasis Total Desalination Solution transforms produced water, one of the largest waste streams in the oil and gas industry, into valuable resources—desalinated water for beneficial reuse and critical minerals that can offset operating costs. The beneficial reuse of desalinated water includes agriculture, irrigation and industrial applications such as power generation and data centers.
The turnkey solution consists of three main steps: pre-treatment, desalination and post-treatment, with mineral extraction being an additional capability. Coupled with an automated control system, the technology operates intelligently to minimize operating costs.
In a Permian Basin trial, the system took produced water and yielded desalinated water with a turbidity of less than 0.5 Nephelometric Turbidity Unit, total organic carbon of 2.47 ppm, total metals of 0.03 ppm and total dissolved solids of 19 ppm, which is significantly less than typical municipal water in the U.S., which contains 300-500 ppm.
Formation Evaluation
Halliburton
Product: PulseStar
Advancements in logging-while-drilling and drilling technologies have significantly enhanced reservoir characterization while reducing well time. Drillers need a high-speed telemetry system to fully benefit from the new technologies, but current high-speed telemetry systems typically lose their transmission speed as wells get deeper.
The PulseStar service from Halliburton provides consistent high data rates at increased depths. Its unique pulse mechanism enables high-speed transmission in deeper depths, providing consistent performance across the reservoir. This allows operators to acquire measurements from various sensors in the reservoir section where detailed characterization and drilling optimization is required, without compromising penetration rate.
Marine Construction and Decommissioning
Oil States
Product: Low-impact workover package system
The Oil States low-impact workover package uses field-proven technology to enhance plug and abandon operations and safeguard aging wells. It integrates low-riser package and emergency disconnect package technologies to create a tether-free, lightweight streamlined system that provides significant advantages compared to existing well intervention and decommissioning systems.