Dr. Roger M. Slatt

Dr. Roger M. Slatt currently holds the Gungoll Family Chair in Petroleum Geology and Geophysics at the University of Oklahoma (OU) and is Director of the Institute of Reservoir Characterization. He was Director of the School of Geology and Geophysics and Eberly Family Chair Professor at University of Oklahoma from 2000-2006, and the Ward Chair Professor of Reservoir Characterization from 2007-10. He formerly was Head of the Department of Geology and Geological Engineering at Colorado School of Mines (1992-2000) and Director of the Rocky Mountain Region Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (1995-2000).

After receiving his Ph.D. in 1970 from the University of Alaska, he taught geology for 8 years at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Arizona State University. He then spent 14 years in the petroleum industry with Cities Service Research, ARCO Research, and ARCO International Oil and Gas. Co. before joining Colorado School of Mines in 1992. He has published over 100 papers and abstracts, and has made numerous presentations on the subjects of petroleum geology, reservoir geology, seismic and sequence stratigraphy, shallow marine and turbidite depositional systems, geology of shale, glacial and Pleistocene-Quaternary geology, and geochemical exploration. He sits on various professional society committees, has organized technical conferences for American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), and teaches short courses for industry and AAPG on the “Introduction to the petroleum geology of deep-water (turbidite) depositional systems” and on “Principles of geologic reservoir characterization”. He also offers a global, web-based course on “Introduction to geologic reservoir characterization” to people from many different countries. He has taught his two courses in many places in the U.S., as well as in many countries, including Colombia, Mexico, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, Angola, India, New Zealand, Scotland, and England.

While employed in the international oil and gas industry, he had the opportunity, as Director of Reservoir Evaluation, to study numerous oil and gas fields and exploration prospects worldwide, and to make recommendations to senior management for international investment. Many of Dr. Slatt’s publications have dealt with the subject of exploration for, and development of deepwater submarine fan (turbidite; basin floor fan) oil and gas reservoirs. He is considered an expert on deepwater submarine fan exploration and development, and has worked in both industry and as a consultant on many such reservoirs globally. In late 2006 he completed co-authoring a book titled: Introduction to the Petroleum Geology of Deepwater Settings, published by American Association of Petroleum Geologists. He also completed a book in late 2006, with a 2nd edition in 2013, titled Stratigraphic Reservoir Characterization for Petroleum Geologists, Geophysicists, and Engineers,published by Elsevier. Also in 2006, he organized the 26th Annual Gulf Coast Assoc. Sedimentary Geologists (GCSSEPM) conference, titled Reservoir Characterization: Integrating Technology and Business Practices, and was chief editorof a CD book comprised of papers from that conference. During 2002-2011, he taught one of the first web-based geologic coursesglobally for AAPG, titled Introduction to Geologic Reservoir Characterization. In recent years, Dr. Slatt and a team of students and colleagues have developed a comprehensive program in unconventional resource shale geology.

In 1996 he received the AAPG Distinguished Service Award. In 1999 he was the Esso Australia Distinguished Lecturer in Petroleum Geology. In 2001-2, he was an AAPG Distinguished Lecturer, giving a presentation titled “Outcrop/behind outcrop characterization of deepwater (turbidite) petroleum reservoir analogs: why and how”. In 2002-3, he offered the same presentation as an SPE Distinguished Lecturer in 2003. In 2003, he was awarded with AAPG Honorary Membership. In 2006 he received the AAPG Grover Murray Distinguished Educator Award. In 2007 he received the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) Special Commendation Award “in recognition of meritorious service rendered the scientific community, the earth sciences and exploration geophysics”. In 2011 he received the Jules Braunstein award for co-authoring the Best Poster at the AAPG Annual National Convention. The poster was titled Multiscale brittle-ductile couplets in unconventional gas shales: merging sequence stratigraphy and geomechanics.