8- www. world- petroleum. org 1.2- The big picture will continue to grow. US President Barack Obama wants to launch a green revolution and to introduce sweeping legislation to tackle greenhouse- gas emissions. He calls his plan " America's new energy economy" and says it will create millions of new jobs - and help lift the US and the rest of the world out of their economic difficulties. It's certainly ambitious. But bringing renewables into mainstream energy supply at the scale required to serve large populations is a difficult job and will take time. Biofuels, for instance, are a com-pelling idea, but there are strong arguments to suggest they don't always make a positive contribution to the environment ( see p114). Meanwhile, as in Washington, most other governments also want to fight climate change too. In December, diplomats from 200 countries will meet in the Danish capi-tal, Copenhagen, to try to thrash out a fiend-ishly complex global agreement on climate-change abatement. A great deal is riding on its success ( see p40). Like the technical solutions, the policy ones depend on creative thinking. The sim-plest, cheapest and most effective way of reducing the environmental impact of en-ergy use is to become more efficient in the way we use it - in buildings and cars ( see p20), for example. But numerous laws, in-centives and regulations are needed to make better habits take root. Another priority is decarbonising the power sector, capturing and storing CO2 produced in electricity generation ( see p94). But that costs money: who will pay for it? There are plenty of other ideas, including cap- and- trade schemes ( see p111). But the right degree of government intervention and financial support is necessary to get these fledgling ideas off the ground. Things are changing, and fast. The world's most dynamic industry is used to that. But the challenges ahead are greater than ever before: it makes 2010 and the next few years crucial for the energy sector. And the world. ?? Bringing renewables into mainstream energy supply at the scale required to serve large populations is a difficult job and will take time Courtesy Markel Redondo, Greenpeace
9- www. energy- future. com Profile - Yasmine Wattebled Name: Yasmine Wattebled Company: Total Present job: Petroleum installations engineer Age: 32 Nationality: French Degree: Engineering diploma, Ecole Centrale de Lyon; Master's in environmental fluid mechanics, Stanford University I joined Total's graduate- training pro-gramme in 2003, after spending my first year after university working for an environ-mental consulting firm in San Francisco, on a water- supply project. Total's programme consists of three two-year assignments in different disciplines - giving you a firm base for career develop-ment and choice. I started as a process engi-neer, based in Paris, assisting in the design of the topside facilities of petroleum platforms - everything that sits on the deck. That includes the oil and gas treatment units. Hydrocarbons must be treated immediately after production so they can be safely transported and so that they meet commercial standards. We'd de-sign equipment then evaluate the costs to see whether the solution we'd come up with was economically viable. It was tough a first; I had little prior knowl-edge of the petroleum industry and had to learn quickly. But my department was dy-namic and senior staff helped me acquire the technology, skills and knowledge I needed. I felt a real sense of belonging - one of the things I most appreciate about Total. In 2005, I became a production engineer on a platform offshore Congo. That was a fantastic experience; you're living with 160 people, in a close- knit community, 80 kilo-metres from the coast, shuttling to and from the mainland by helicopter. We saw dol-phins, whales . it's the only time I've had a sea view in my office and bedroom! The job was on a rotational basis: four weeks on and four weeks off. Having every other month off gave me an incredible sense of freedom - like having a second life. I'd go home to Paris or go travelling. The operational side was really exciting too: you learn so much on site. I was tasked with developing ways of optimising the pro-duction process to boost oil and gas output and my process- engineering placement was invaluable experience. I was able to reduce greenhouse- gas emissions from the platform by one- third, which was very satisfying. Given my first job and the nature of my degree, good environ-ment stewardship is important to me. If you want to have an impact on the environment - by minimising gas flaring or improving the quality of produced water, for example - you can really make a difference working for an energy company. In 2007, I was put in charge of a project to build a new camp - houses, restaurants, offices and recreation facilities - to accom-modate 260 people working at an onshore gas plant. I'm handling the contractual and commercial negotiations - liaising with sup-pliers and contractors and managing engi-neering. It's a completely different challenge. You've got to get what you want done, which isn't always easy. I'm Paris- based, but travel to Nigeria frequently. It's amazing how many disciplines the pe-troleum industry covers. There's the tech-nical side - safety, process, mechanical, electrical engineering and so on. But you can go in plenty of other directions - project management or economics, for instance. You never get bored. You're always learning. And you're at the heart of geopolitics, work-ing in an international and culturally varied environment. It's invigorating. ??