Growing up in Bogotá, Colombia, Roberto Aguilera was exposed to the petroleum industry at a young age through his father’s work as a roughneck for Exxon. The influences and advice from his father encouraged him to study petroleum engineering at the University of America in Bogotá. Aguilera has had an extraordinary career working in Colombia, America, and Canada and traveling the world as an SPE Distinguished Lecturer.

During his career, Aguilera’s research was focused on naturally fractured reservoirs, which he brought to the forefront of petroleum engineering. He is now a Professor of Petroleum Engineering and CNOOC chair in Tight Oil and Unconventional Gas Engineering at the University of Calgary in Canada. Aguilera has achieved earning his PhD, writing the first book in the war in petroleum engineering, and starting his own consulting company. The experiences he has had as an SPE member, from conferences to serving as an executive editor of the SPE Journal, has benefited his career.

Listen to his oral history as he shares his love of SPE, career journey, and advice for the future generation of the petroleum industry.