Ask an Expert: Hoss Belyadi

We sit down with one of the co-authors of Hydraulic fracturing in unconventional reservoirs, 2nd Edition to find out what inspired him to work in the Energy field and what he considers the biggest pain points facing the industry.

Name: Hoss Belyadi
Title: Senior Subsurface Engineer
Affiliation: EQT Corporation3

1. What is your particular area of expertise?

My areas of expertise are completions/reservoir optimization, machine learning, and project evaluation.

2. How would you explain your current work to a stranger on a bus?

I am a petroleum engineer with considerable passion for science and artificial intelligence. My main responsibility at work is to enhance natural gas production from the field in the most value driven and cost-effective manner.

3. Where do you carry out most of your work?

Downtown Pittsburgh

For a limited time, you can read Chapter 16 Operations and execution on ScienceDirect.

4. What first inspired you to study your subject matter?

I am mainly fascinated with engineering and science. My favorite topic in high school was calculus. At a young age, I realized that I wanted to be an engineer because I always appreciated and truly enjoyed dealing with numbers. When I was a senior in high school, I was intrigued by the complex nature of dealing with energy and its nuanced impact on society.  It is truly inspiring to explore the energy industry’s direct role in our everyday lives. We are currently so dependent on it that we can simply not live without it.

5. What’s the most exciting part of your job?

Every day offers a unique opportunity to discover new ways to solve complex problems in the most time efficient, straightforward, and comprehensive manner. I love working in a fast-paced environment where I am constantly challenged. My job has enabled me to excel and improve myself in the most rewarding possible way by optimizing the field in the most economical manner.

6. What keeps you awake at night?

Artificial intelligence, automation, and machine learning. This is an area that frightens some people due to their inability to comprehend its true capability. I am, however, fascinated by the future of artificial intelligence, automation, and machine learning. I truly believe that almost all industries are at the very beginning phase in applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to various problems. These developments have and will create tremendous, exciting opportunities for growth and the creation of value.  The most successful of us will adapt new technologies to the rapidly growing and changing world.

7. What false preconceptions do people have about your job?

Unfortunately, the false perception that people have about the oil and gas industry and people who work for the industry is that we are destroying the planet and do not care about the environment.  My colleagues, most of the people that I have ever dealt with in the last decade of my career, and myself care deeply about the environment, consistently working towards the most environmentally friendly solutions available. Natural gas is a transitional energy source that is far better and more environmentally friendly than coal due to emitting much smaller quantities of CO₂ when burnt. The development of unconventional shale reservoirs has had a tremendous impact by shifting from using coal to natural gas.

8. What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned this week at your job?

According to Forrester, less than 0.5% of all data is analyzed and used. In addition, according to a Senior Analyst at Forrester, “Just a 10% increase in data accessibility will result in more than $65 million additional net income for a typical Fortune 1000 company.” This illustrates the importance of big data opportunities in various industries for a foreseeable future.

9. What do you think will be the next big discovery or development in your field?

Natural gas hydrate reservoirs. Natural gas hydrates, with perhaps the largest volume of gas in place, pose the greatest future challenges with respect to technology, economics, and the environment.

10. What are the biggest pain points in the industry?

Low commodity pricing. Future generations will look back and wonder why the cost of energy was so cheap.

11. How have you used books for your own professional research and how it influenced your work, research or thinking, or help you solve a problem in your field? What outcome did it lead to?

“Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.” Charles William Eliot.

Books have changed my life for better. I never look at the price tag of any book simply because one lesson could earn me hundreds, thousands, or quite possibly millions. Books have given me wisdom, patience, perspective, knowledge, and most importantly, peace of mind. Reading without action is insufficient because, without the implementation of knowledge obtained from reading, there is no outcome. I encourage everyone to start reading and implementing your ideas learned today to change your life for better. I’d like to finish this Q/A by a famous quote by Lee Brown, American criminologist:

“The graveyard is the richest place on earth, because it is here that you will find all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled, the books that were never written, the songs that were never sung, the inventions that were never shared, the cures that were never discovered, all because someone was too afraid to take that first step, keep with the problem, or determined to carry out their dream.”

Keep reading, learning, and implementing!

About the book

Hydraulic Fracturing in Unconventional Reservoirs, 2nd Edition: Theories, Operations, and Economic Analysis

• Helps readers understand drilling and production technology and operations in shale gas through real-field examples
• Covers various topics on fractured wells and the exploitation of unconventional hydrocarbons in one complete reference
• Presents the latest operations and applications in all facets of fracturing

The book is available now on ScienceDirect. Want your own copy? Order via the Elsevier Store and enter STC319 at the checkout to save up to 30%