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Anas Alam Faizli has recently joined UEM Edgenta Propel as Head, Performance Improvement. When he’s not working, he spends his time with his adorable and beautiful daughter.
1. In 2014, you wrote a book which became a bestseller in Malaysia for a period of time and it’s called Rich Malaysia, Poor Malaysians. In it, you talked about how PETRONAS plays a significant role in contributing to the country’s economy. With the current times of unstable oil price, what can you advise fresh graduates who are passionate about the industry but are unsure about their futures? Should they still pursue their passions?
Thank you for your question. For your information, there is a new edition to the book. Recently published and launched in 2017 by Tan Sri Arshad Ayub, who is one of our eldest statesmen in the country. Actually, the oil and gas industry is normally very volatile. The oil price will go up and go down. The only difference is that it has been low for a period of 3 years and it’s giving a massive impact to the industry, in which we have seen layoffs and people becoming unemployed, cutting measures, etc. But to me personally, we are looking at the new normal where the price of oil is at $50 per barrel. The oil and gas industry has survived before at $20-30 per barrel. What happens is when it hit $100 per barrel, the amount of wastages and inefficiency in the industry grew. With the new normal, we can see the emergence of new technologies and a new way of doing things. For fresh graduates, my advice is they should continue pursuing their education in oil and gas because it is still the dominant industry with the highest standards for engineering, safety and quality, as well as professionalism. Professionals in oil and gas are very much sought after. So, please keep pursuing your passions because the future in energy industry is still bright.
2. How important has your professional network been, in getting you where you are today? Also, other than the workplace, where should one start building their professional network?
As a word of advice, for someone who is just starting up their career, one should not be working in limited silos. For example, if that person is working in Downstream business in a particular process plant, perhaps as a mechanical engineer, he should not be focusing on just mechanical. In fact, he should ingrain in himself a love for the industry, because the only way to improve himself is to understand the bigger picture by interacting with professionals from other disciplines. He needs to learn about the industry as a whole and extend the understanding to Upstream business. Like myself, I’ve always been exposed to Upstream activities but I’ve had the opportunity to complete the whole cycle of Upstream – from engineering, to procurement, to construction, to commissioning; and I have also had the exposure of working offshore and internationally. I think that young professionals should interact with people outside of their scope of work. They should build their professional network when they meet with their counterparts from subcontractors and clients. They should also join professional societies such as Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and Malaysian Oil & Gas Services Council (MOGSC) – where they will have plenty of opportunity to network and expand their knowledge. In terms of online networks, there are various groups you can join such as Linkedin Groups, where you can connect with other professionals in the field.
3. Seeing as you came from an academic background, where both of your parents were lecturers at the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), how important is education in shaping one’s career path? And do you think that fresh graduates today are well-equipped to navigate their way in their jobs?
When you’re in university, education is not just limited to the subjects you are taking. There are 2 aspects in education – 1) To teach you how to Learn. For example, in a semester you might be learning 4 different topics and skillsets. So you can easily adapt this to working life where you’re able to pick up learning about different things at once. 2) It teaches you how to Socialise. There are many associations, extracurricular activities, student body programs, which you can join and be a part of. You have to embrace it holistically and learn to make the most out of your university experience. I’ve always believed that education is the number one problem solver to all our social woes.
4. Do you feel that youths today have more opportunities given global connectivity?
I believe the youths today have the additional advantage because you are able to obtain information at your fingertips. Back in the day, you have to spend more on experiences. Now you can easily read up on things online and the transfer of knowledge has grown tremendously faster than ever before. The expectation on the youths is more and the competition has become fierce. The opportunity to expand one’s self is unlimited.
5. What challenges do you see forthcoming in the oil & gas industry?
The challenges would be for the smaller companies which provide oil & gas services, whether they can survive and adapt to these trying times. Companies have to make serious decisions when they are going into an oil and gas business. This is not the type of industry where you can simply go in for the easy money. It has become more challenging due to the new ‘normal’.
6. On a personal note, what challenges have you overcome in your career? And how did you do it? You spent 2 years working offshore between Malaysia-Vietnam borders – was this the toughest time for you?
One of my biggest challenges was when I was just starting work, I was a non-engineer and my degree was in Computer Science. I joined the industry because they needed someone with a computer science background to do the project planning. From there, I picked up project understanding, and then became a Project Engineer, and soon started managing projects. As a non-engineer who had to understand the engineering environment, there were definitely more challenges for me during the first formative years in my career. The times when I worked offshore were also tough, but more so from a physical aspect.
7. Name the most memorable experience that happened in your career. How did it affect you and did it change you for the better?
One of my most memorable experience was to get an offer from Petronas Carigali. I was working all the way in Teluk Ramunia with Sime Darby Engineering, and I was wondering if I was ever going to get out of that remote location! Another memorable experience was when I was offered to work in Vietnam under Talisman, which was quite a transformative experience because I had to deal with international people on a global scale. Dealing with the Vietnamese people was also quite a challenging experience in the beginning because of the differences in culture. Furthermore, they were very inexperienced as they had never done fabrication engineering, or had a full-fledged procurement process. So, we had to teach them these things. Eventually we got their buy-in and the processes became smooth. It was very fulfilling in the end.
8. What would you like to see differently in the way things are operating in the energy, oil and gas industry in Malaysia?
I would want to see more local Malaysian players taking on global competition. I would also like to see service providers going global. As you know, we (the local oil & gas industry) has been around as long as Singapore and Korea. So, I want to see local players becoming as successful as Hyundai engineering, or Samsung Engineering, etc. I want to see that happening in the near future.
9. In today’s world, everything is going digital. Even learning. Digital learning in Oil & Gas is now possible with e-courses, webinars, and VR modules (which are also available on NrgEdge). How big do you think is the market for this type of learning in Malaysia? Should oil and gas companies consider digital learning to upskill their employees?
I think that learning and education is something you could never spend enough on. I believe that the ROI for upskilling employees is always very good. We have seen many cases where companies spend on human capital and seen tremendous rewards in terms of revenue and efficiency. I’m all for this.
10. You must lead a busy life, besides working, you have your active volunteer work and writing on the side – how do you manage the elusive ‘work life balance’? Is such a thing possible in today’s day and age of technology, where work can follow you on mobile?
I think that when work follows you on mobile, you become more efficient. When I was studying for my doctorate, I was also working and managing a few NGOs on the side, as well as managing the book. It all boils down to time management. Passion and dedication is also a contributing factor. In this day and age, it is possible to have a more balanced life. More companies are open to working from home thanks to connectivity. You can easily reply a work email or text on your mobile, instead of having to go into office to reply on your desktop. I think that having work done via mobile is not a negative thing – in fact things are more efficient now.
11. You’ve written a book, met incredible leaders, and led various organisations on top of your existing day job. So, what else is in store for you?
Interesting question but I’ll just have to keep this as a surprise! Something is coming soon, that’s all I can say.
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Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Annual Electric Generator Inventory
Based on the U.S. Energy Information Administration's (EIA) annual survey of electric generators, natural gas-fired generators accounted for 43% of operating U.S. electricity generating capacity in 2019. These natural gas-fired generators provided 39% of electricity generation in 2019, more than any other source. Most of the natural gas-fired capacity added in recent decades uses combined-cycle technology, which surpassed coal-fired generators in 2018 to become the technology with the most electricity generating capacity in the United States.
Technological improvements have led to improved efficiency of natural gas generators since the mid-1980s, when combined-cycle plants began replacing older, less efficient steam turbines. For steam turbines, boilers combust fuel to generate steam that drives a turbine to generate electricity. Combustion turbines use a fuel-air mixture to spin a gas turbine. Combined-cycle units, as their name implies, combine these technologies: a fuel-air mixture spins gas turbines to generate electricity, and the excess heat from the gas turbine is used to generate steam for a steam turbine that generates additional electricity.
Combined-cycle generators generally operate for extended periods; combustion turbines and steam turbines are typically only used at times of peak load. Relatively few steam turbines have been installed since the late 1970s, and many steam turbines have been retired in recent years.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Annual Electric Generator Inventory
Not only are combined-cycle systems more efficient than steam or combustion turbines alone, the combined-cycle systems installed more recently are more efficient than the combined-cycle units installed more than a decade ago. These changes in efficiency have reduced the amount of natural gas needed to produce the same amount of electricity. Combined-cycle generators consume 80% of the natural gas used to generate electric power but provide 85% of total natural gas-fired electricity.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Annual Electric Generator Inventory
Every U.S. state, except Vermont and Hawaii, has at least one utility-scale natural gas electric power plant. Texas, Florida, and California—the three states with the most electricity consumption in 2019—each have more than 35 gigawatts of natural gas-fired capacity. In many states, the majority of this capacity is combined-cycle technology, but 44% of New York’s natural gas capacity is steam turbines and 67% of Illinois’s natural gas capacity is combustion turbines.
Countries that are not members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Asia, including China and India, and in Africa are home to more than two-thirds of the world population. These regions accounted for 44% of primary energy consumed by the electric sector in 2019, and the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projected they will reach 56% by 2050 in the Reference case in the International Energy Outlook 2019 (IEO2019). Changes in these economies significantly affect global energy markets.
Today, EIA is releasing its International Energy Outlook 2020 (IEO2020), which analyzes generating technology, fuel price, and infrastructure uncertainty in the electricity markets of Africa, Asia, and India. A related webcast presentation will begin this morning at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time from the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Outlook 2020 (IEO2020)
IEO2020 focuses on the electricity sector, which consumes a growing share of the world’s primary energy. The makeup of the electricity sector is changing rapidly. The use of cost-efficient wind and solar technologies is increasing, and, in many regions of the world, use of lower-cost liquefied natural gas is also increasing. In IEO2019, EIA projected renewables to rise from about 20% of total energy consumed for electricity generation in 2010 to the largest single energy source by 2050.
The following are some key findings of IEO2020:
IEO2020 builds on the Reference case presented in IEO2019. The models, economic assumptions, and input oil prices from the IEO2019 Reference case largely remained unchanged, but EIA adjusted specific elements or assumptions to explore areas of uncertainty such as the rapid growth of renewable energy.
Because IEO2020 is based on the IEO2019 modeling platform and because it focuses on long-term electricity market dynamics, it does not include the impacts of COVID-19 and related mitigation efforts. The Annual Energy Outlook 2021 (AEO2021) and IEO2021 will both feature analyses of the impact of COVID-19 mitigation efforts on energy markets.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Outlook 2020 (IEO2020)
Note: Click to enlarge.
With the IEO2020 release, EIA is publishing new Plain Language documentation of EIA’s World Energy Projection System (WEPS), the modeling system that EIA uses to produce IEO projections. EIA’s new Handbook of Energy Modeling Methods includes sections on most WEPS components, and EIA will release more sections in the coming months.
Disruptions to crude oil and condensate production from members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC countries have risen considerably since last year. These outages have contributed to reduced liquid fuel supply and, along with crude oil production declines agreed to among OPEC and partner countries (OPEC+), have contributed to global liquid fuels inventory draws since June.
So far in 2020, monthly oil supply disruptions have averaged 4.6 million barrels per day (b/d) and reached 5.2 million b/d in June, the highest monthly levels since at least 2011, when the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) began tracking monthly liquids production outages. Global oil supply disruptions averaged 3.1 million b/d in 2019, and rising outages in Iran have been the main drivers of the year-on-year increase. EIA does not include field closures for economic reasons or oil demand declines in its accounting of supply disruptions.
Libya, Venezuela, and Iran (the OPEC countries exempt from the latest OPEC+ agreement) were the main contributors to these outages. Domestic political instability in Libya has removed about 1.2 million b/d from oil production since February 2020. The Libyan National Army, the warring faction in eastern Libya, blockaded five of the country’s oil export terminals and shut in oil production from major fields in the southwestern region in January 2020, causing Libya’s production to fall to less than 100,000 b/d by April.
U.S. sanctions have led to production outages in Venezuela and Iran. U.S. sanctions placed on oil-trading companies and shipping companies that facilitated exports of Venezuela’s crude oil in the first half of 2020 removed 500,000 b/d of crude oil production from global markets by August. Ongoing U.S. sanctions on Iran’s crude oil and condensate exports have kept Iran’s disruption levels elevated through 2020, and disruptions there have increased by another 100,000 b/d since January.
Non-OPEC oil supply disruptions, mostly from the United States and Canada, rose to nearly 800,000 b/d in August. Disruptions in Canada occurred when operators ordered nonessential staff to stop work because of coronavirus outbreaks at production sites. In the United States, hurricane-related disruptions and unplanned maintenance affected oil production this summer. Other non-OPEC countries experienced temporary field closures for various reasons such as coronavirus outbreaks among workers, logistical issues moving workers or equipment during the pandemic, fires at field operations in Canada, or other natural disasters.
EIA publishes historical unplanned production outage estimates in its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO). In its estimates of outages, EIA differentiates among declines in production resulting from unplanned production outages, permanent losses of production capacity, and voluntary production cutbacks. EIA’s estimates of unplanned production outages are calculated as the difference between estimated effective production capacity (the level of supply that could be available within one year) and estimated production.
