Oil and gas projects bring together subsurface science, wells, facilities, pipelines, materials, environmental management, project delivery and business decisions. Engineers working in any one of these areas are more effective when they understand how the others frame their decisions. This intermediate refresher in oil and gas engineering covers the whole upstream value chain: the petroleum system and reserves, building and completing wells, drilling and well design, production plant, subsea equipment, pipelines and processing, materials and corrosion, environment and risk, and project and business management, each with worked problems and exercises. The course is designed to help engineering graduates connect reservoir, well, facility and pipeline concepts, and to see how integrity, risk, environmental and economic considerations shape engineering choices.
Course at a glance: Duration 20 hours · Self-paced online · Level: Intermediate
What you will learn
- Explain the core technical scope of subsurface, wells, drilling, facilities, subsea, processing and pipeline engineering.
- Compare how each area frames engineering decisions, from reservoir evaluation to facilities and project delivery.
- Relate reservoir, well, drilling, facilities and pipeline concepts across the upstream value chain.
- Explain separation, process flow schemes and process safety systems.
- Evaluate how integrity, risk, environmental management and corrosion considerations influence engineering choices.
- Explain project planning and control, stage gates, scheduling and earned value.
- Assess how economics, fiscal systems, investment appraisal and HSE support technical delivery.
Inside the course: a high-level summary, section by section.
Subsurface: reserves, rock and fluids
The course begins with evaluation and reserves, explaining how hydrocarbon volumes are estimated and classified and why reserves categories reflect both technical and commercial certainty. Reservoir rock and fluid properties, porosity, permeability, saturation, net-to-gross and compressibility, determine how much hydrocarbon is in place and how easily it flows. Volumetrics and recovery connect these properties to estimates of in-place volumes and recoverable reserves.
Wells and drilling
Well construction is introduced through casing, cementing and the well lifecycle. Completions and fluids explain how wells are prepared for production, and pressure control and well barriers show how wells are kept safe at every stage. The drilling section deals with the design basis, tubulars and surveying, the rig and its fluids, and well paths and string loads, highlighting how equipment, fluids, barriers, casing, controls and completion decisions depend on each other.
Production facilities
Facility components, separators, compressors, pumps, heat exchangers and utilities, are introduced alongside integrity management and decommissioning. Separation and the process flow scheme explain how well fluids are split into oil, gas and water, and process safety systems, including shutdown, relief and fire and gas detection, explain how facilities are protected against hazardous events.
Completions and subsea systems
Completions and flowlines connect wells to facilities, while controls and intervention describe how subsea wells are operated and maintained. Reservoir inflow and skin explain how near-wellbore damage or stimulation affects well productivity. Subsea tie-back concepts show how new fields can be developed economically by connecting to existing infrastructure.
Processing and pipelines
Pipeline design covers routing, sizing and mechanical design. Flow and processing link pipeline behaviour to upstream separation, and pipeline hydraulics explains pressure drop and capacity. Flow assurance and erosion address hydrates, wax, slugging and erosion by sand. An export pipeline screening study applies these concepts to a realistic decision.
Materials and corrosion science
Materials selection balances strength, corrosion resistance and cost. Corrosion mechanisms and failure modes, including sweet and sour corrosion, are explained, together with monitoring and inspection techniques and corrosion control through inhibitors, coatings, cathodic protection and corrosion-resistant alloys.
Environmental impact and risk management
Environmental assessment identifies potential impacts of oil and gas activities. Risk management methods and hazard identification tools provide structured ways to identify and reduce risk. Emissions and discharges are addressed as both regulatory and engineering concerns, and a tie-back risk and environment study brings these together.
Engineering project management
Planning and control, change management and knowledge management are introduced as foundations of project delivery. The project lifecycle and stage gates explain how projects move from concept to execution with defined decision points. Scheduling and earned value provide tools to track progress and cost against plan.
Business essentials
HSE and teams are treated as part of business performance. Economics and finance introduce the time value of money, and fiscal systems and project cash flow explain how royalties, taxes and production-sharing arrangements affect project returns. Investment appraisal and uncertainty show how decisions are made when outcomes are uncertain.
Integrity across the life of a field
Integrity is a thread that runs through every section. Wells rely on barriers that must be verified throughout their life; facilities depend on inspection, maintenance and process safety systems; pipelines must be protected against internal and external corrosion, erosion and mechanical damage; and at the end of field life, wells must be plugged and facilities decommissioned safely. The course shows how integrity thinking begins at the design stage, through material selection, corrosion allowances and inspection access, and continues through operations with monitoring and risk-based inspection. It also explains why decommissioning should be considered early, since design choices made decades earlier determine how difficult and costly removal will be.
Worked problems and study exercises
The course uses worked problems in every section and two integrative studies, an export pipeline screening study and a tie-back risk and environment study. These exercises ask learners to apply methods from several disciplines to a single decision, to compare options on technical, risk, environmental and economic grounds and to state their assumptions clearly. The focus is on reasoning and judgement rather than memorising formulas, reflecting the way that concept and screening studies are carried out in industry.
Seeing the value chain as a whole
The course’s breadth is deliberate. Reservoir uncertainty affects how many wells are needed and how large the facilities should be; well productivity affects pipeline sizing and flow assurance; produced fluid composition drives materials and corrosion decisions; and every technical choice ultimately appears in the project schedule, the risk register and the cash flow. By moving through each discipline in turn and then linking them through worked problems and study exercises, the course helps engineers understand how decisions in their own area affect others and why project teams must work across boundaries.
Why this matters in practice
Most engineers in oil and gas work within one discipline, but the best decisions come from understanding the whole system. A broad refresher helps engineers communicate with colleagues, contribute to concept selection and integrated studies, and move between roles.
Key takeaways
You leave able to explain the main technical areas of upstream oil and gas, relate reservoir, well, facility and pipeline concepts, evaluate integrity, risk and environmental considerations, and understand how project management and economics shape technical delivery.
How you study
The course is delivered fully online and is self-paced, so you can fit roughly 20 hours of study around professional commitments. Lessons combine clear explanation with examples, diagrams and short interactive checks.
Course contents
- Subsurface: Evaluation and Reserves; Reservoir Rock and Fluid Properties; Volumetrics and Recovery; Subsurface Worked Problems
- Wells: Well Construction; Completions and Fluids; Pressure Control and Well Barriers; The Well Lifecycle; Wells Worked Problems
- Drilling Technology: Well Design Basis; Tubulars and Surveys; Rig Systems and Drilling Fluids; Trajectory and String Loads; Drilling Worked Problems
- Facilities: Facility Components; Integrity and Decommissioning; Separation and the Process Flow Scheme; Process Safety Systems; Facilities Worked Problems
- Advanced Completion and Subsea Systems: Completions and Flowlines; Controls and Intervention; Reservoir Inflow and Skin; Subsea Tie-back Concepts; Completion and Subsea Worked Problems
- Processing and Pipelines: Pipeline Design; Flow and Processing; Pipeline Hydraulics; Flow Assurance and Erosion; Pipeline Worked Problems; Export Pipeline Screening Study
- Materials and Corrosion Science: Materials Selection; Corrosion and Failure; Corrosion Monitoring and Inspection; Corrosion Control; Corrosion Worked Problems
- Environmental Impact and Risk Management: Environmental Assessment; Risk Management Methods; Hazard Identification and Risk Tools; Emissions and Discharges; Risk and Environment Worked Problems; Tie-back Risk and Environment Study
- Engineering Project Management: Planning and Control; Change and Knowledge; Project Lifecycle and Stage Gates; Scheduling and Earned Value; Project Management Worked Problems
- Business Essentials: HSE and Teams; Economics and Finance; Fiscal Systems and Project Cash Flow; Investment Appraisal and Uncertainty; Business Worked Problems
- Summary: Key Takeaways
Who this course is for
This intermediate refresher is for engineering graduates and practising engineers in petroleum, mechanical, chemical, process, civil and subsea engineering who want a structured overview of oil and gas engineering. An engineering degree or equivalent experience is expected, along with familiarity with introductory fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and materials.
Frequently asked questions
How long does Oil and Gas Engineering take?
The course is designed for about 20 hours of study. It is self-paced and fully online, so you can spread it over a few weeks or complete it more quickly.
What is covered?
The course is organised into sections, moving from foundations to applied methods, as summarised above.
Is there material to keep after the course?
Yes. The course material remains a useful reference for later work.
Can I record this study for my own professional development?
Yes. The course notebook includes a self-assessment of the course objectives before and after study, a reflection page and a learning log, which you can use to keep your own record of professional development.
Level: Intermediate
Duration: 20 hours
Related courses: G02 – Drilling and Well Engineering; G01 – Hydraulic Fracturing and Shale Gas; F03 – Subsea Engineering; G04 – MSc Petroleum Production Engineering
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