Reservoir Engineering and Enhanced Recovery Techniques Training Course

Course overview

A producing reservoir gives up only a fraction of the oil originally in place, and the gap between what stays trapped and what reaches surface is where reservoir engineering earns its keep. This course looks closely at how rock and fluids behave under changing pressure, how engineers read the signals a field sends over its life, and which recovery methods can pull additional barrels from formations that primary depletion has left behind.

The material is built for practitioners who make or influence field decisions and want a firmer grasp of the physics and economics beneath them. It connects the properties of porous rock to observable production behavior, then works through the recovery techniques used when natural drive energy fades, so that participants can reason about interventions on evidence instead of habit.

Why recovery factors matter to asset value

Operators are under steady pressure to lift ultimate recovery from mature assets while holding down cost and emissions, and small movements in the recovery factor translate into large swings in reserves and net present value. Regulators, partners, and reserves auditors all scrutinize the assumptions behind a development plan, so the engineer who can defend a drive-mechanism interpretation or a decline forecast is worth a great deal to a team.

Enhanced oil recovery has also taken on a second role as carbon-management infrastructure. Miscible CO2 flooding that once existed only to boost production is now weighed for the volume of CO2 it can retain in the subsurface, a shift that reflects the wider direction described in our work on petroleum reservoir characterization and modeling at petroleum reservoir characterization and modeling. Understanding that dual purpose is now part of everyday reservoir practice.

What you will be able to do afterwards

By the close of the course, participants should be able to:

• Explain how porosity and permeability govern reservoir flow.
• Identify drive mechanisms from production and pressure trends.
• Build decline and material-balance forecasts, noting their limits.
• Interpret pressure transient and well test data.
• Compare thermal, gas and chemical EOR options for a given field.
• Evaluate miscible CO2 flooding for recovery and storage value.
• Plan a reservoir strategy that balances recovery, cost and risk.

Course outline

Unit 1: Fundamentals of reservoir engineering

• Porosity, permeability and fluid saturation.
• Darcy flow assumptions in porous media.
• Fluid properties and phase behavior.
• Original oil in place and recovery factor.

Unit 2: Reservoir analysis and evaluation

• Material balance and decline curve analysis.
• Pressure transient and well test analysis.
• Reservoir drive mechanism identification.
• Cross-checking of independent reserve estimates.

Unit 3: Reservoir simulation and modeling

• Grid models from geological and fluid inputs.
• Reservoir simulation and history matching.
• Sensitivity cases for outcome uncertainty.
• Model-based comparison of recovery strategies.

Unit 4: Enhanced oil recovery techniques

• Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) fundamentals.
• Steam flooding and steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD).
• Gas injection and miscible CO2 flooding.
• Chemical EOR with alkali-surfactant-polymer (ASP).

Unit 5: Reservoir management strategies

• Surveillance of pressure, production and injection.
• Voidage replacement and injection management.
• Well and pattern decisions for long-term recovery.
• Coordination of subsurface and facilities plans.

Unit 6: Economic and risk considerations

• Value and cost of incremental recovery.
• Monte Carlo simulation of reserve uncertainty.
• Capital, operating cost and price exposure.
• EOR-specific risk factors, including sweep efficiency.

Unit 7: Future trends in reservoir engineering

• CO2 injection and carbon storage in EOR.
• Data-driven forecasting and surveillance methods.
• Lower-emission field design implications.
• Reservoir engineer's role in energy portfolios.

How the course is delivered

Sessions are led by an experienced reservoir practitioner and built around discussion, worked examples, and documented field case studies. Participants examine interpreted datasets and model outputs through guided walkthroughs, then reason through decisions together in group exercises, so the emphasis stays on judgment rather than passive listening.

Who should attend

The course suits reservoir, production and petroleum engineers, along with geoscientists, reserves and asset-evaluation staff, and technical managers who rely on recovery forecasts to make decisions.

• Reservoir and production engineers
• Petroleum and petrophysical engineers
• Development geoscientists and reserves evaluators
• Asset and subsurface team leaders

About EuroQuest International Training

EuroQuest International Training was founded in 2015 and has since delivered over 1,000 courses to more than 15,000 participants. The organization is headquartered in Bratislava, Slovakia, and runs training hubs in Dubai, London, Barcelona, Istanbul, Vienna, Paris, and Geneva, bringing practitioner-led technical courses to professionals across the energy sector.

Frequently asked questions

Does the course include live software or laboratory sessions?

No. The course is discussion and case-study based, and simulation is treated conceptually through interpreted model outputs and worked examples that participants review together. There is no live software or laboratory session, so you do not need a reservoir simulator installed to follow the material or contribute to the exercises.

Do I need a strong mathematics background to benefit?

A working comfort with basic reservoir concepts helps, but the course explains the reasoning behind each method before applying it. The aim is to build sound engineering judgment about recovery decisions, so participants from adjacent technical roles usually keep pace without difficulty.

Will the course tell me which EOR method to use on my field?

It gives you the screening logic to shortlist options against reservoir and fluid properties, but a final selection always depends on field-specific data and study. Treat the course as a way to sharpen how you evaluate candidates, not as a substitute for a full technical and economic assessment of your own asset.

Related courses

• Sedimentary Basin Exploration and Hydrocarbon Potential
• Advanced Seismic Interpretation and Exploration Technologies
• Energy Transition and Decarbonization in Oil and Gas
• Energy Resources and Geosciences Innovations

Register for this course

If you want to strengthen how your team reads reservoir behavior and chooses recovery methods, register for this course or contact the EuroQuest team to arrange a place and discuss scheduling options that suit you.