Energy, mining executives tell Montana Tech students graduates are poised to fill increasing demand for power
ConocoPhillips CEO and Chairman Ryan Lance and Chairman of the Board of Freeport-McMoRan Richard C. Adkerson talk with Lance Energy chair Robert Morris about the Future of Energy
ConocoPhillips CEO and Chairman Ryan Lance and Chairman of the Board of Freeport-McMoRan Richard C. Adkerson told students on Wednesday that world energy demand is projected to continue to see strong growth in the coming years and that graduates of Montana Technological University are uniquely poised to help fill those needs.
A crowd listens as ConocoPhillips CEO and Chairman Ryan Lance and Chairman of the Board of Freeport-McMoRan Richard C. Adkerson talk with Lance Energy chair Robert Morris about the future of energy
The industry leaders sat down with Lance Energy Chair Robert Morris to discuss the future of the energy market. Morris noted that in the last 25 years world energy consumption in the world and the United States has grown 50%, and that energy consumption is expected to only increase as more and more of the world’s six billion energy-poor residents gain access.
ConocoPhillips CEO and Chairman Ryan Lance and Chairman of the Board of Freeport-McMoRan Richard C. Adkerson pose for a photo with students in the Underground Mine Education Center
“The world is getting more and more electrical,” Adkerson said. “You can see this coming and it’s accelerating now with everything being automatic and electrical. Cooper is really key to things like evolving data science or artificial intelligence.”
Montana Technological University is home to programs in petroleum engineering, electrical engineering, geological engineering, metallurgical and materials engineering, environmental engineering, civil engineering, construction management, mining engineering, and safety, health and industrial hygiene, all of which have applications related to providing energy or materials and infrastructure necessary to expand the energy grid.
President and Chief Operating Officer, Freeport-McMoRan Indonesia and Executive Vice President, PT Freeport Indonesia Mark Johnson and Chairman of the Board of Freeport-McMoRan Richard C. Adkerson visit the Underground Mine Education Center
“You are at the juxtaposition, this school and the degree programs that are on offer here, you know, have a tremendous future because of the need for affordable and reliable energy,” Lance said.
Chairman of the Board of Freeport-McMoRan Richard C. Adkerson visits the Underground Mine Education Center
The executives addressed the perceived negative impact of energy expansion and encouraged the audience to consider collaborative, rather than combative approaches to solutions.
“You shouldn’t criticize oil and gas, and then oil and gas people shouldn’t criticize developing clean energy,” Adkerson said. “It’s too much of an us-versus-them thing. We have to deal with all these issues.”
Engineers are required not only to produce energy, but also to mitigate the potential negative impacts of production, Lance noted.
“We can’t leak methane, you can’t flare gas, and we need to take care of what we call orphan wells – wells that were drilled 100 years ago, that weren’t properly abandoned,” Lance said. “The thing about all three of those is they are imminently engineerable. We need people that can come in and help us do that. Our company spends about $300 million a year right now reducing those emissions that we create in our business. If every company has that kind of a goal to reduce your own emissions you produce, then we can take care of the longer-term issues around the planet.”
Lance and Adkerson also gave students advice on their careers, management and much more. To watch the full conversation, click here.
To learn more about programs in Montana Tech’s Lance College of Engineering, click here.