Total is a global oil and gas producer and supplier operating in 130 countries with nearly 100,000 employees,

who practise their

skills in more than 500 industrial, commercial and support occupations covering all aspects of the petroleum industry: oil and
natural gas exploration and production, renewable energy development, refining, distribution and trading. Total is also a major
player in chemicals.
To further its development, the Group annually recruits worldwide nearly 10,000 new employees, both male and female, juniors
and seniors, at all levels of training. All are different, but share the dynamism, receptiveness, adaptability and team spirit that
are key to the Group's success.
Careers
Well Drilling Engineer m/f
In the Exploration & Production sector, Total is noted for steady growth in its production and in its oil and gas
reserves, thanks to its positions in the North Sea, Africa, the Middle East, the Far East and America. Once a
prospected area is shown to be promising, a subsidiary drilling operation is set up and the Well Drilling Engineer
drills wells to confirm the presence of hydrocarbons. If this is successful, new wells are drilled to determine the
precise dimensions of the field. Finally, development wells are drilled to extract the oil and gas from the fields.
The tasks of a Well Drilling Engineer lie in four core areas:
As part of each task, the engineer watches over the safety of the men and installations and ensures respect for the
environment.
> First steps
A junior Well Drilling Engineer works initially (for eighteen to twenty-four months) as a Junior Supervisor and
sometimes as a Rig Engineer on a drilling rig. His second posting will be to a subsidiary as a junior base engineer
(around two years) then he will join a research team based in Paris or Pau (around two years). At the end of this
training period, he is a qualified engineer and joins a subsidiary.
> Career options
After an initial posting to a subsidiary as a qualified engineer, he will be given a change of post approximately every
three years, alternating between a subsidiary and headquarters. Eventually, he may become a senior Well Drilling
Engineer, a departmental manager at headquarters, a Drilling Supervisor in a small to medium-sized subsidiary
then in a large subsidiary, or occupy other managerial posts. He may also take up a career as
a specialist or expert.
> Profile required
Graduate of a School of General Engineering, possibly supplemented by an ENSPM/DEG
training course. Long training periods or VIE in the oil industry, preferably in the field of
drilling, are appreciated.
Geographical mobility, personal authority, aptitude for team work, adaptability, decision-
making skills, receptive to new ideas.
A good working knowledge of English essential, a second foreign language appreciated.
Conducting operations: in a subsidiary, he is based
overseas working on drilling rigs or platforms to
prepare operations or take part in intricate operations.
He supervises well drilling and helps to solve day-to-
day technical problems. In development, he delivers
the field, ready for production, to the operator.
Planning and design: he produces drilling and
completion programmes, forecasts the timescale and
budget for operations, analyses and optimises methods
and processes. He selects the equipment and controls
costs. He orders and supervises special studies by head
office or engineering service companies. He manages
the relative budgets.
Contract management, project and drilling site
supervision: at a subsidiary or headquarters, he
prepares tenders, produces technical specifications
then selects suppliers. He takes part in the fabrication
and acceptance of equipment and manages relations
with contractors.
Operations supervision and engineering studies: at
headquarters, he has a role in supervising and assisting
with operations and carries out studies for the
subsidiaries or other departments.
P
h
o
t
o

c
r
e
d
i
t
:

Z
y
l
b
e
r
m
a
n

L
a
u
r
e
n
t
.
Experiences
Samir O.
Nationality: French Age: 31
Well Drilling Engineer - Graduate of the cole Centrale de
Nantes, ENSPM Diploma in Oilfield Development and
Production
After a two-year posting in Venezuela followed by two years of
supervision on a drilling site (on land then offshore), I spent three years
as a Well Drilling Engineer at a subsidiary in Luanda, Angola.
Now I am at the forefront of the development operations carried out by
the Group. Specifically, I conduct preliminary project engineering studies
and business related with new wells, upstream of operations, in
conjunction with the exploitation engineers. These engineers coordinate
development studies for new or producing oilfields. They manage
relatively large projects which they initiate by collecting data required for
engineering and economic analyses. Then they coordinate with the
Group's business lines which take the studies forward in their special
fields.
Synthesising well-drilling expertise
For my part, I coordinate all studies related with well drilling. I analyse the
problems, seek solutions with the help of specialists (stratum-borehole
link-up, activation, rock mechanics...) and finally I assess the well-drilling
expertise and recommend the best solution.
A study may take a week for a prospect analysis, or up to six months in
the case of a preliminary project engineering study. It deals with both the
technical and economic feasibility of the project. The areas of interest are
located all over the world, so I virtually, or actually during study
assignments, tour the world as part of a team of seven engineers based
in Paris who do the same job as I do. I do five to six studies
simultaneously so I need to organise my time very carefully.
A joint decision-making process
The exploitation engineer is particularly interested in the cost estimates
produced in the study. After I have submitted my study, and once the
technical feasibility and HSE (Health, Safety and Environmental) risks
have been assessed and validated, he passes it to an economist to
assess the cost-effectiveness of the project. His report then goes up
through the various decision-making levels of the Group as far as the
Executive Committee, which decides in last resort whether or not to
launch. Every study does not have a successful outcome and
paradoxically this is what makes the job so interesting. By examining the
subsequent stages through which the studies pass, you see in action the
decision-making process on which the launch of a project depends.
So I get an overall view of the operation of the Group, particularly in
Exploration & Production, and of all the related validation procedures.
And then if a new field is opened up I have the satisfaction of telling
myself that maybe I had something to do with it.
Claudia P.
Nationality: Venezuelan Age: 31
Well Drilling Engineer Paris (France) - Graduate of an
Engineering School in Venezuela and holder of an MSc
degree in Oilfield Development and Production from the IFP
Assisting the Subsidiaries
First of all, the team assists the subsidiaries upstream or during their
operations. The team leader centralises requests and operational queries
from the subsidiaries and, according to the specialities, each member
responds to them within his or her sphere of activity.
Preliminary design studies well architecture
I also participate in preliminary design studies. Once the drilling location
has been pin-pointed by the reservoir engineers and a development
project has been drawn up by the exploitation engineers, we conduct
feasibility studies on, for example, vertical profiling, the section of the
casing that will be lowered into the drilled well to bring up effluent, or the
choice of a piece of drilling equipment capable of exploiting the well. For
a well feasibility study, one must calculate whether the pumping capacity
during drilling and the hoisting capacity for raising and lowering well
casings will be sufficient. At the same time, we must examine the strength
of the materials chosen at the pressure and temperature to which the well
will be subjected.
What I like about these studies is that, in addition to varying in duration
and complexity, they are very specific and hands-on. In addition, the team
that monitors the subsequent operations (those who put what we have
studied into effect) gives us regular feedback on our recommendations.
We then use this operational feedback to optimise our future studies.
Constant monitoring of new technology
Finally, I have a third cross-departmental task of acting as a kind of referral
agent over two specialities within the Group. Total has decided to
centralise information on new technology so that it can be passed on to
the subsidiaries. Therefore several of us are tasked with a technology
watch at companies supplying the subsidiaries and other operators, to
monitor the deployment of new drilling technology and inform the
subsidiaries of innovations.
For example, a task that has been put on hold for lack of adequate
technology may be reinstated if advances in technology enable it to be
done. My brief covers multilateral technologies (wells with several
branches) and expandable tubular technologies (casings that are lowered
into wells then expanded to increase well production diameter).
Shared experience and multicultural interaction
In my job, I am frequently in contact with people who have more work
experience than I have. However, when carrying out studies experience
is an important factor. By working with more experienced people you
learn from them. My work environment is also a multicultural one
because of the many contacts with the subsidiaries and with service
companies or other operators. This is very rewarding.
An important factor in my job is planning control. I often carry out several
studies at the same time and the important thing is to produce a result
quickly and not become bogged down in the details of the study. To
avoid overrunning deadlines and also savour the sheer variety of
assignments, it is essential to manage your time well.
Recruitment, Careers & Diversity Division
2, place Jean Millier La Dfense 6 92400 Courbevoie France
www.careers.total.com
R
.
C
.

P
A
R
I
S


4
9
2

0
5
8

7
1
4