Fueling the Future conference moving to larger venue

The industry is buzzing about “Fueling the Future: Women in Oil and Gas”, an international conference scheduled for March 8 and 9, in St. John’s.

Advance registrations have been so successful that the original venue has sold out. The event is now being moved, from the Delta Hotel to the St. John’s Convention Centre.

“There’s been tremendous interest in Fueling the Future,” said Michael Clair, Associate Director (Public Policy) with the Harris Centre, which is presenting the conference. “This has been expressed in calls and emails we’ve received, and reflected in the registrations we’ve booked, which exceeded our own, fairly optimistic expectations. This indicates that the oil and gas industry is committed to increasing women’s participation in non-traditional occupations.”

However, a number of supply and service companies have yet to register, said conference spokesperson, Caron Hawco, Communications Lead, with Statoil Canada Ltd.

“Some supply companies have registered, but we’d like to see more,” Hawco said. “This conference will be of particular interest to companies in the supply sector, who will find the conference program very helpful in working with operators to develop their own diversity plans.”

Oil and gas operators are required to include diversity strategies in their development agreements, and most will expect the same of the suppliers they hire, Hawco added.

Keynote speakers include Sara N. Ortwein, President, ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company; Hege Marie Norheim, Senior Vice President, Statoil; Catherine MacGregor, President, Schlumberger Wireline; Dr. Sylvia Ann Hewlett, President, Centre for Work-Life Policy; and the Honourable Joan Burke, Minister of Education, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Fueling the Future will feature more than 40 presenters, from industry, government, post-secondary institutions, non-governmental organizations and academia. The conference will highlight employment trends and best practices, explore challenges facing women in the oil and gas industry, and suggest changes that will improve the participation of women in oil and gas.

Fueling the Future: Women in Oil and Gas takes place March 8 and 9, 2011 in St. John’s, Newfoundland. It is presented by the Harris Centre, of Memorial University of Newfoundland. Please visit the official conference site, for more information or to register.