City of Houston, Texas USA

Since the discovery of Spindletop in 1900, the Houston region has emerged as the energy capital of the world. The Houston region is recognized for its concentration of oil expertise and its large technical labor force equipped to manage the challenges of the world’s ever-changing oil industry.

It is home to more than 3,400 energy-related establishments, both upstream and downstream. The Texas Gulf Coast has a crude operable capacity of more than 4 million barrels of refined petroleum products per day. Houston is also home to 10 of the 25 largest publicly traded oil and gas exploration firms.

Houston continues to be in the forefront of energy exploration and production technology. Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, Baker Hughes, Schlumberger and Weatherford International are among energy firms with major R&D laboratories in Houston. Current research focuses on ultra-deepwater drilling, downhole oil-water separation, intelligent wells, MonoDiameter wells, permanent downhole monitoring, 4-D seismic, rotary closed-loop drilling systems and technology for harsh environments. The Houston-based Advanced Energy Consortium, led by Rice University and The University of Texas at Austin and including the largest oil companies in the industry was formed in 2008 to pursue micro and nanotechnology applications to increase oil and gas production.

As proof of Houston’s large and talented workforce, the Metropolitan Statistical Area boasts more than 47,000 jobs in crude petroleum and natural gas extraction and nearly 43,000 jobs in support activities for mining.

The Port of Houston offers energy processors an inexpensive way to move substantial amounts of gas and liquid products by ship. Houston also possesses a complex of several thousand miles of product pipeline connecting some 200 chemical plants, refineries, salt domes and fractionation plants along the Texas Gulf Coast. It gives the Houston area a unique economic advantage through convenient and low-cost transfer of fuel and chemical products among plants, storage terminals and transportation facilities.

Through participation in WECP, Houston hopes to:

  • Enhance recognition as a premier energy city
  • Attract jobs, investment and business
  • Establish relationships to facilitate economic development and business interactions
  • Create education and marketing opportunities
  • Create networking opportunities
  • Communicate energy related opportunities

Through participation in WECP, Houston hopes to address the following needs the energy sector:

  • More opportunities to increase international business, in terms of:
    • International trade
    • Job creation
    • Capital investment
  • More opportunities to increase recognition that the City of Houston is an important Energy Capital

Through participation in WECP, Houston hopes to create and support initiatives that address needs and challenges.  Some of these initiatives could include:

  • Direct investment toward future technology
  • Expand research and development infrastructure in the energy sector
  • Link business to technology
  • Fund public and private partnerships
  • Provide an innovative business climate
    • Tax incentives
    • Emerging technology grant funding opportunities

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