MIDDLE EAST TURBOMACHINERY SYMPOSIUM SET FOR QATAR IN MARCH

The second bi-annual Middle East Turbomachinery Symposium (METS) takes place in Doha, Qatar from the 17th to the 20th of March 2013. Exhibitors and attendees from all over the world will enjoy a week of lectures, short courses, case studies and networking.

AbdulazizAl-Naimi, Joint Interest Manager at RasGas and Co-Chair for METS, said he expected perhaps 300 attendees and a handful of exhibitors for the inaugural show in 2011. However, over 1,000 industry professionals and 60 exhibitors made the trip.

“The first METS was a great success for the participants, organizers and sponsors,” said Al-Naimi. “They all wanted to come again due to the quality of the attendees. Those from outside the region realized that a real thirst existed for greater knowledge of turbomachinery and pumps.”

What draws so many to Qatar every two years is a booming economy and an unprecedented opportunity to engage with many of the top players in the region. Qatar Petroleum, RasGas, Saudi Aramco, QatarGas and ExxonMobil are among the premier sponsors and are all major players in this vibrant energy hub.

The Middle East, after all, sits atop more than half the world’s known oil reserves and 36% of gas reserves. It is home to the largest concentration of LNG production facilities in the world. For more than a decade, it has been among the leaders in new turbomachinery project development worldwide.

And Qatar ranks third in the world in gas reserves behind Russia and Iran. Over 50% of the GDP comes from gas exploration and exportation processes. Oil reserves are estimated about 15 billion barrels, while the reserves of gas mount up from 80 to 800 trillion cubic feet.

The State of Qatar is a peninsula situated towards the Southwest of the Arabian Gulf. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia. The country is ruled by His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, known as the Emir. As a result of his policies, industrialized products ranging from petrochemicals to refining have earned it second position in GPD per capita globally. “Qatar is midway between the West and the Far East, and in the center of a region rich with oil, gas and LNG,” said Al-Naimi. “Visitors will also be surprised by the city of Doha, which is booming. It is a showcase of modern architecture and a hive of industrial expansion.”

This event is an outgrowth of the annual Turbomachinery Symposium sponsored by Texas A&M University’s Turbomachinery Laboratory. Dr. Dara Childs, director of the lab since 1984, is co-chair of the METS Advisory Committee. “What few people realize is that Doha is a safer city than Houston,” said Childs.

He and his committee have compiled a packed agenda: Lectures will delve into subjects, such as steam turbines and blade rows, polymer seals, cavitation and suction performance, gas turbine driven centrifugal compressor trains, magnetic bearings, cryogenic compressors, and CO2 compressors.

Case studies have been handpicked to provide real-world relevance for users of twin dry screw compressors, boiler feed water pumps, separation seals, centrifugal compressors, gas turbines and turboexpanders.

In addition, short courses are being offered on babbitted bearings, root cause failure analysis, magnetic bearings, centrifugal compressor and steam turbine materials, turbocompressor performance, condition monitoring and the lateral rotordynamics of petrochemical equipment. Formore information, visit http://middleeastturbo.tamu.edu/.