Local Content with a Global Vision

More trained and specialized workers are needed to cover the increase in oil and gas and renewable energy activities in Mexico, especially given ambitious local content requirements. Education will play an even greater role going forward, says Adrien Caudron, Founder and Director General of ITPE. “ITPE was founded to train and prepare the human capital required to meet the opportunities brought by the Energy Reform and will be part of the educational basis that will strengthen the industry in Mexico,” he says.

ITPE integrates the academic and business worlds through four program pillars: bachelor and master programs, specialized training programs, R&D and consultancy services offered through its spin-off called Rise Energy. Caudron says these four pillars were created as part of a strategy to differentiate ITPE graduates from the rest of the pack. “Our study programs include cutting-edge technologies and the knowledge shaping the industry. An example is the fact that we are including data management and IT sciences courses. It is not common to find geologists with that kind of specialized knowledge in any other educational institution,” he says, adding that the four pillars offer students cross-over training. “Some students also do their professional practice at our R&D department and at Rise Energy. This gives our students the opportunity to get more real-world experience and allows the enrichment of every pillar through fresh ideas.”

Starting and developing a new concept in the education segment is not an easy task, especially considering that the concept included both public and private institutions interacting for the benefit of the industry, Caudron says. “At the beginning it was difficult to begin talks with public universities to establish positive synergies but, in the end, they saw the benefits of becoming partners of a private educational institution that is solely focused on oil and gas and renewable energy topics and that has a business vision at its core.” Having a business vision makes ITPE work at a faster peace, Caudron continues. “Our business-oriented vision fits with the needs of the industry.”

The programs offered at ITPE have evolved according to needs of the market and its players, explains Caudron. The school now also offers online courses for greater accessibility. Representatives of PEMEX and ASEA have received specialized training programs from ITPE, and the institution has developed strong partnerships with leading players in the industry. “Some of the prestigious partners we are already working with are UNAM, IPN, IFP and Texas A&M University. On the business side, we work with companies like PEMEX, Shell and ABB,” Caudron says. Yucatan proved to be the perfect location for ITPE, as it is starting to receive calls from Central and South American companies and educational institutions eager to work with it.

Learning is not all about reading books and writing essays, it is also about applying the acquired knowledge to real-life scenarios. ITPE offers practical experience in the form of cutting-edge laboratories that were built with private and public capital and will help students remain at the forefront of the industry. “One of the pieces of equipment we are most proud of is the drilling simulator, which is capable of recreating real situations based on data gathered from E&P activities at real drilling sites. It can even recreate crisis situations for those using it to improve their responses in those situations,” says Caudron. “Two private players have already used the drilling simulator to train personnel, showing the true potential of the technology not only for educational purposes but also for the real working environment.”

Courses and trainings have allowed it to be accredited and certified as an IFP Training Center, making it the only company in Mexico capable of offering IFP training programs in the country, Caudron says. It will also open a training center in Tabasco. In an effort to keep working at the forefront of the development of human capital and innovation in Mexico, the company is now working on the development of what it calls the ITPE Talks. “This platform is an opportunity for experienced players in the industry to share their insights with members of ITPE, whether they are students or professionals,” Caudron continues. “With the ITPE Talks, we want to create a safe space where the main issues of the oil and gas and energy industries can be discussed together with new generations, therefore allowing for an exciting sharing of ideas.”