Richard Smout

Biography

 Richard gained a Bsc. (Hons) Geology/Geography degree from Liverpool in 1980 and started working in the oil industry as a mudlogger in Saudi Arabia before moving to a geological consultancy as a lithostratigrapher attached to UK, Europe and Middle East projects. A spell working in geotechnics on the channel tunnel and road construction projects was followed by a number of years as a wellsite geologist in the UKCS. Richard then became an Operations Geologist and has worked for various operators in the UK, Europe, Africa and the Middle East on many challenging projects for over 20 years, gaining experience in a variety of disciplines including HPHT, Deep Water, Geosteering, Well Planning, Hazard Avoidance, Site Surveys and Technology.  From managing small close-knit efficient teams to being part of larger organisations, Richards approach to Operations Geology has been consistent in his attempt to bring together multi-disciplined teams through communication.  Richard has also set up new training and mentoring programs within the Operations Geoscience discipline for a number of operators.   Recent work with the Geological Society has included being on the convening committee of the Operations Geology conferences and co-editor of the Special Publication on Operations Geology.   He is a keen mountaineer and sailor.

Research Interest

 Deep Water, Geosteering, Well Planning, Hazard Avoidance, Site Surveys and Technology.