wexpro_001The Department of Chemical Engineering received a generous donation from a prominent local organization – Wexpro, the exploration and production subsidiary of Questar Corporation. This included personal protective equipment for our Petroleum Engineering program. Wexpro has been an ardent supporter of petroleum and energy education at the University of Utah.

Wexpro is an industry-leading natural gas development and production company. Its operations are conducted in Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah; producing gas for the residents and businesses supplied by Wexpro affiliate Questar Gas, Questar Corp.’s natural-gas utility. Wexpro continues to flourish on account of its strong reserves, increasing production, and low-cost structure.

Justin Woody, Vice President of Wexpro, has been an enthusiastic supporter of this program to develop geoscience-savvy MS-level petroleum engineers. He has played a critical liaison role between the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Utah and Wexpro. Our department looks forward to continued collaboration with the Questar Corporation. Mr. Woody is pictured below (center) with Dean Richard Brown (College of Engineering) on the left, and Professor Milind Deo (Chair of Chemical Engineering) on the right.

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During the 2014 summer semester, another Wexpro affiliate, Questar Pipeline, hosted the inaugural class of 14 students and three faculty of the University of Utah, Master of Science in Petroleum Engineering Field Study, CH EN 6171, at the Clay Basin Storage Facility in Daggett County, UT. Questar Pipeline generously agreed to host the Field Study at its 110 BCF capacity (working and cushion) natural gas storage facility. Jacob Abraham, Questar Pipeline Reservoir Engineer and MS Petroleum Engineering Student, provided a detailed overview of the operations and reservoir at Clay Basin.

Students were able to tour the five 2,600 HP reciprocating compressors, three 6,500 HP turbine compressors and one 1,680 HP park and loan compressor currently in operation at Clay Basin. They also learned the economic importance of a gas storage facility, as well as the crucial role it plays in Questar Pipeline’s ability to ensure reliable gas delivery to its users.