Describe the upstream, midstream and downstream segments of the oil and gas value chain and how they connect.
Oil, Gas & Energy
Oil and Gas Fundamentals for Non-Technical Professionals
Builds a working knowledge of upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas operations so finance, legal, HR and support staff can read technical documents and contribute to commercial decisions with confidence.
🗓️Duration5 training days
📚Content4 modules · 8 sessions
🎓On completionAccredited attendance certificate
About the programme
Course Overview
Lawyers negotiating a joint operating agreement, financial analysts reviewing a field development plan, and recruiters hiring for a drilling campaign are all non-technical professionals expected to follow technical conversations without having studied petroleum engineering. This fundamentals course builds that working knowledge by tracing the oil and gas value chain in the sequence a barrel or a cargo of gas actually follows: exploration and appraisal, drilling and well completion, production and processing, pipeline and LNG transport, refining, and trading. Participants learn to read a well schematic, a seismic section and a production decline curve, to recognise the commercial logic behind concessions, production-sharing contracts and joint operating agreements, and to follow how capital moves through an authorisation for expenditure. Exercises use realistic field data extracts and contract clauses rather than lecture alone, so participants leave able to question technical colleagues more precisely, follow project economics discussions, and understand how safety cases and environmental permits shape everyday operating decisions across upstream, midstream and downstream businesses.
Expected Learning Outcomes
Interpret a basic well schematic, seismic section and production decline curve without specialist training.
Distinguish concessions, production-sharing contracts and joint operating agreements by their commercial effect.
Explain how an authorisation for expenditure moves capital through an oil and gas project.
Summarise the LNG value chain from liquefaction through shipping to regasification.
Relate crude oil assay properties and refining units to the products a refinery sells.
Identify the safety case and environmental obligations that shape operating decisions on a facility.
Who Should Attend
Finance and treasury staff who review budgets, valuations or joint venture accounts in an energy company.
Lawyers and contract managers drafting or negotiating upstream and midstream agreements.
Human resources and recruitment professionals supporting technical and operational teams.
Supply chain and procurement staff sourcing equipment and services for field operations.
Communications, government relations and investor relations staff explaining project activity externally.
Graduates and new hires joining an oil and gas company from a non-engineering background.
Course Modules
Select any module to see its sessions and points.
01The Structure of Upstream, Midstream and Downstream Business
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Exploration, Appraisal and Field Development Planning
- Follow how 2D and 3D seismic surveys and exploration wells build a picture of a subsurface prospect.
- Distinguish an exploration well from an appraisal well and explain what each is designed to prove.
- Read the key sections of a field development plan, including reserves, production profile and facilities.
- Explain how proved, probable and possible reserves differ and why the distinction matters to investors.
Session 2Drilling, Completion and Production Basics
- Identify the main sections of a well schematic, including casing strings, cement and the production tubing.
- Explain what a wellhead and Christmas tree do once a well is completed and put on production.
- Describe how a production decline curve is used to forecast future output from a field.
- Relate reservoir pressure and drive mechanism to the artificial lift options an engineer might choose.
02Processing, Transport and the LNG Value Chain
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Gas Processing, Pipelines and LNG
- Explain the purpose of a gas processing plant in removing water, acid gas and heavier hydrocarbons.
- Describe how a pipeline network and compressor stations move gas from field to market.
- Follow the LNG chain from liquefaction trains through shipping to regasification terminals.
- Compare pipeline gas and LNG as delivery routes for the same molecule reaching different customers.
Session 2Refining and Product Markets
- Interpret a crude oil assay in terms of API gravity, sulphur content and product yield.
- Trace a barrel of crude oil through distillation, cracking and blending into finished products.
- Relate a refinery's product slate to the markets for petrol, diesel, jet fuel and petrochemical feedstock.
- Explain why refining margins move independently of the crude oil price.
03Commercial Structures and Project Economics
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Contracts, Licences and Joint Ventures
- Compare a concession, a production-sharing contract and a service contract as licensing structures.
- Explain what a joint operating agreement governs between partners in a licence.
- Describe the role of a national oil company and a host government in a production-sharing contract.
- Identify the cost recovery and profit-sharing mechanics typical of a production-sharing contract.
Session 2Project Economics and Capital Approval
- Explain how an authorisation for expenditure document supports a capital spending decision.
- Relate breakeven oil price to a project's capital cost, operating cost and production profile.
- Interpret a simple net present value and internal rate of return comparison between projects.
- Identify the main cost categories, including drilling, facilities and abandonment provisions, in a field budget.
04Safety, Environment and the Energy Transition
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Process Safety and Environmental Compliance
- Explain the purpose of a safety case and why major hazards are managed differently from occupational risk.
- Identify the environmental permits and monitoring obligations that apply to a producing facility.
- Describe how a permit-to-work system controls hazardous activity on an operating site.
- Relate a process safety incident to the barriers that should have prevented it.
Session 2The Low-Carbon Transition in Oil and Gas
- Explain how methane management and flaring reduction affect an operator's emissions profile.
- Describe how carbon capture, hydrogen and offshore wind projects connect to existing oil and gas infrastructure.
- Relate an operator's decarbonisation targets to the investment decisions reported to shareholders.
- Identify the workforce and skills implications of a company's move into lower-carbon energy.
What the participant receives
4 course modules
A structured syllabus
8 training sessions
across 5 days
32 detailed points
Applied, detailed content
Accredited attendance certificate
On completing the programme
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