aramco
Principal Production & Completions Specialist
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About the Company
At Aramco Europe, we believe in the power of energy to transform lives, strengthen communities, and support human progress. We connect people, projects, and markets to help deliver reliable energy solutions around the world while advancing innovation and sustainability.
Our European research centres play a key role in developing next-generation technologies that address some of the industry's most complex challenges. Through collaboration, scientific excellence, and a commitment to innovation, we support the development of technologies that improve operational performance, enhance safety, and contribute to a more sustainable energy future.
As part of one of the world's largest integrated energy and chemicals companies, you will have the opportunity to work on high-impact projects, collaborate with leading experts, and contribute to technologies that can shape the future of the energy industry.
Job Purpose
We are seeking an experienced Specialist Researcher to join our Aberdeen research team and play a leading role in the development of next-generation drilling technologies.
This is a senior technical position for an individual with significant expertise in drilling engineering, applied research, technology development, and operational problem solving. The successful candidate will serve as a recognised subject matter expert responsible for defining and conducting advanced research into complex, novel, and strategically important drilling challenges.
Working with considerable autonomy, you will provide scientific leadership across key areas of the drilling research programme, helping to shape research priorities, influence technology strategy, and deliver innovative solutions that can be translated into practical engineering applications. You will work closely with drilling engineers, operations teams, technology developers, data specialists, and external research partners to develop technologies that improve drilling performance, operational reliability, safety, and cost efficiency.
The role requires strong technical judgement, intellectual curiosity, and the ability to solve highly complex multidisciplinary problems. You will be expected to influence senior stakeholders, guide research direction, mentor technical professionals, and contribute to the development of standards, methodologies, and best practices that support the organisation's longer-term technology objectives.
Responsibilities
- Production & Completions Research: Lead research into completion design, production optimisation, artificial lift, stimulation, flow assurance, well integrity, intervention, production chemistry, equipment reliability, and emerging technologies.
- Research Strategy: Identify high-value research opportunities, develop roadmaps and proposals, and help shape production and completions technology priorities.
- Technology Development: Develop, test, and validate new technologies, tools, materials, methodologies, and digital solutions through laboratory studies, simulations, field trials, and pilots.
- R&D Methodologies: Improve research methods, analytical models, and technical processes to enhance quality, efficiency, and practical application.
- Technical Problem Solving: Provide expert guidance on complex production and completions challenges, integrating research findings, operational experience, and field data.
- Research Insights & Reporting: Analyse data, identify trends, and communicate findings and recommendations to technical and management stakeholders.
- Data Analytics & Modelling: Apply advanced analytics, predictive modelling, machine learning, and AI to production, completions, intervention, integrity, and subsurface data.
- Funding & Value Realisation: Develop business cases and funding proposals, assessing feasibility, risks, costs, benefits, and realised operational value.
- Technology Assessment: Monitor emerging technologies including AI, automation, robotics, advanced materials, downhole sensing, electrification, and lower-carbon solutions.
- Research Implementation: Translate research outcomes into engineering solutions, technical standards, operating practices, and decision-support tools.
- Field Trials & Validation: Define validation strategies and oversee field trials, pilot programmes, and technology demonstrations, evaluating results and deployment potential.
- Technical Assurance & Compliance: Ensure research activities comply with HSE, regulatory, technical assurance, ethical, and research integrity requirements.
- Programme Delivery: Provide scientific leadership across multiple projects, managing priorities, risks, dependencies, and delivery of research objectives.
- External Collaboration: Build partnerships with universities, research institutes, technology providers, operators, service companies, and industry organisations.
- IP & Research Governance: Protect confidential information and intellectual property, support patents and invention disclosures, and ensure research governance compliance.
- Business Advice: Provide specialist advice on policies, procedures, technical matters, and business processes.
- Operational Compliance: Monitor activities to ensure compliance with organisational policies, regulations, and professional standards.
- Performance Management: Set and achieve performance objectives, driving accountability and continuous improvement.
- Personal Development: Maintain subject matter expertise through professional development, industry engagement, conferences, publications, and awareness of emerging technologies.
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Tasks
- Designing and conducting advanced applied research into complex drilling challenges using experimental, analytical, statistical, and modelling techniques.
- Investigating drilling performance issues through the analysis of drilling, operational, and subsurface data to determine root causes, identify performance trends, evaluate risks, and develop technically sound recommendations.
- Developing, testing, and validating new drilling technologies, tools, materials, methodologies, and digital solutions through laboratory studies, simulations, field trials, and operational pilots.
- Providing expert technical advice and scientific guidance on complex, non-routine, and previously unresolved drilling challenges.
- Leading or directing significant research projects and technical workstreams, ensuring the quality of research outputs while managing resources, schedules, risks, and dependencies.
- Translating research outcomes into practical engineering solutions, operating procedures, decision-support tools, technical standards, and implementation plans.
- Supporting the advancement of technologies from concept and research stages through prototype validation, field demonstration, qualification, deployment, and operational adoption.
- Evaluating emerging technologies and identifying opportunities that could provide operational, commercial, or strategic value.
- Preparing research proposals, technical justifications, and investment cases that clearly assess feasibility, risks, costs, readiness, and expected benefits.
- Producing technical reports, scientific publications, management presentations, invention disclosures, and other research outputs that communicate findings effectively to a variety of audiences.
- Collaborating with universities, research institutes, technology providers, specialist laboratories, and industry organisations to deliver high-quality research programmes.
- Sharing knowledge across the organisation through mentoring, technical leadership, coaching, presentations, and collaboration initiatives.
- Supporting continuous improvement activities and contributing to the development of future research strategies and technology roadmaps.
This position offers the opportunity to directly influence the future of drilling operations through the creation and deployment of innovative technologies that deliver measurable operational value.
Experience
We are seeking an accomplished engineering and research professional with typically 12+ years of relevant experience in drilling technology, applied research, engineering, or a related upstream discipline.
The successful candidate will demonstrate:
- Extensive experience designing and delivering advanced applied research programmes focused on complex drilling challenges.
- Proven success developing and validating drilling technologies, tools, materials, software applications, or technical methodologies.
- Experience applying experimental methods, advanced analytics, simulation, statistical techniques, and modelling approaches to solve operational challenges.
- A strong track record of resolving complex, non-routine drilling problems by combining scientific evidence, engineering judgement, and operational experience.
- Demonstrated experience leading significant research projects or technical workstreams and translating research outputs into practical operational solutions.
- Expertise in at least two of the following areas:
- Drilling mechanics, torque and drag, drill-string dynamics, vibration, and extended-reach drilling.
- Drilling hydraulics, hole cleaning, managed-pressure drilling, and lost-circulation mitigation.
- Wellbore stability, geomechanics, and formation interaction.
- Drill bits, bottom-hole assemblies, directional drilling, and downhole tool development.
- Drilling fluids, cementing technologies, and wellbore chemistry.
- Drilling automation, real-time optimisation, sensing technologies, and decision-support systems.
- Experience progressing technologies from concept development through prototype validation, field trials, qualification programmes, and operational deployment.
- Experience planning and executing drilling technology field trials, including development of objectives, success criteria, HSE requirements, performance evaluation methods, and implementation recommendations.
- Strong technical communication skills, including experience preparing technical reports, publications, management briefings, and presentations.
- Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams and external research partners to deliver innovative technical solutions.
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Candidates with experience in artificial intelligence, machine learning, digital drilling technologies, advanced sensing systems, robotics, automation, or data-driven drilling optimisation will be particularly attractive.
Education
Candidates should possess a Master's degree or PhD in Drilling Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Physics, Chemical Engineering, Data Science applied to Engineering, or another closely related technical discipline.
A Bachelor's degree combined with significant technology-development and field-deployment experience may also be considered.
Equivalent professional experience may be accepted in place of formal academic qualifications where candidates can demonstrate exceptional technical expertise and achievement within the relevant field.
Managerial/Mentoring Experience
The role typically requires between two and four years of experience providing technical leadership, mentoring, coaching, or strategic guidance to experienced engineers, researchers, and specialists.
You will be expected to support the development of technical capability within the organisation, transfer critical knowledge, influence professional standards, and help prepare future technical leaders to address increasingly complex operational and research challenges.
Additional – Optional/Advantageous
The following qualifications and experience would be considered advantageous:
- Chartered Engineer (CEng) status through the Engineering Council UK or an equivalent professional accreditation.
- European Engineer (EUR ING) recognition through FEANI.
- PRINCE2 Practitioner, PMP, or similar project management certification.
- A proven history of innovation through patents, invention disclosures, technology commercialisation, or field-deployed technologies.
- Experience managing large research programmes, technology portfolios, or multidisciplinary technical initiatives.
- Recognised contributions to industry research, technical publications, conferences, or professional organisations.
This is an exceptional opportunity for a highly experienced drilling technology professional who is passionate about innovation, research, and the development of industry-leading solutions that can shape the future of drilling operations worldwide.
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion
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