UAF receives ConocoPhillips gift to support engineering
April 1, 2014
Marmian Grimes
907-474-7902
4/1/14
A $300,000 gift from ConocoPhillips Alaska will support engineering research at the University of Alaska Fairbanks petroleum engineering department.
The donation brings the company’s total donation to UAF to $1 million. Past funding includes $500,000 in 2011 and $200,000 in 2012.
“ConocoPhillips has a long history of supporting education and engineering programs in Alaska,” said Nick Olds, vice president of North Slope Operations and Development for ConocoPhillips Alaska. “We greatly value the close relationship we have with staff at the college to collaborate on research and development projects that help the industry and students alike.”
The UAF Petroleum Development Lab will receive $200,000 to support its research on subsidence related to permafrost thaw and the damage that can cause to North Slope oil wells. The remaining $100,000 will support research grants for graduate and undergraduate students.
“We are very appreciative of the support that ConocoPhillips has provided over the years,” said Doug Goering, dean of the UAF College of Engineering and Mines.
The company has been a consistent partner in the school’s endeavors to provide students with a high-quality learning environment and supply the industry with applied research and a highly-trained workforce, he said. “ Today’s contribution is the latest example of that. These funds will help us and the industry better understand the intricacies of permafrost behavior near operating oil wells and will provide our students with fantastic opportunities for hands-on research experience.”
UAF has been educating engineering students since its inception nearly a century ago. ConocoPhillips has a longtime association with the College of Engineering and Mines. The company offers internships to students and many of those students move on to full-time positions when they graduate. Company representatives and alumni serve on the school’s advisory board and give back to the school as volunteers and mentors. In addition, the university and ConocoPhillips have a longstanding tradition of research collaboration.
ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Natalie Lowman, ConocoPhillips Alaska, at 907- 263-4153 or N.M.Lowman@conocophillips.com, Doug Goering, 907-474-7730 or djgoering@alaska.edu.
NOTE TO EDITORS: A photo of the gift presentation is available online at //news.uaf.edu/cp_april2014/.
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