Texas A&M University receives $1 million gift from Anadarko Foundation
March 05, 2009
The gift from the Anadarko Foundation, a nonprofit organization operated by Anadarko Petroleum Corporation for educational and charitable purposes, was presented at a celebration luncheon held on campus and attended by several alumni employed by Anadarko, current Texas A&M petroleum engineering students and campus administrators.
“People are the foundation of our success at Anadarko, and we are committed to developing the future leaders of our industry. Almost 200 of the people who work at Anadarko today are graduates of Texas A&M, so we appreciate the significant role this university plays in developing the talented and skilled individuals who are key to our industry’s ability to continue finding and producing the energy resources we all need,” said Chuck Meloy, Anadarko’s senior vice president of Worldwide Operations, who holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Texas A&M. “It is an honor to support development of the future innovators of our industry through this gift that will enhance development of crucial specialized skills in petrophysics and reservoir engineering.”
Petrophysicists study the rock properties of natural resource reservoirs, including oil, natural gas and ore deposits. The new laboratory will support the undergraduate course in reservoir petrophysics and more than a dozen graduate courses related to reservoir engineering.
“Anadarko is a worldwide leader in oil and natural gas exploration, and Texas A&M Engineering is grateful that they have chosen to partner with us in this way to educate students who themselves will be future leaders,” said G. Kemble Bennett, vice chancellor and dean of engineering.
The gift will help fund renovation of existing space in the Joe C. Richardson Petroleum Engineering Building, salaries for staff associated with the petrophysics laboratory and purchase of equipment, materials and supplies.
“In the next few decades, it will take substantially more new technology for the oil and natural gas industry to provide the energy supply the world is demanding. To develop that technology, we need state-of-the-art facilities to provide the hands-on experience our students will need to step up to the challenge,” said Stephen A. Holditch, petroleum engineering department head and holder of the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation Endowed Chair.
The Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering is home to about 590 undergraduate and 250 graduate students. U.S. News & World Report magazine ranks the department first in undergraduate and second in graduate studies among U.S. institutions of higher education.
