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inspiring the next generation of energy explorers
Remarks by Rex W. Tillerson
Chairman and CEO, Exxon Mobil Corporation
Hispanic Engineering, Science & Technology Week (HESTEC), University of Texas-Pan American, Edinburg, Texas
September 27, 2007
Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today.
Hispanic Engineering, Science and Technology Week provides a unique and valuable opportunity to focus on the important contribution Latino students can make to strengthening the United States’ leadership as an “innovation nation.” ExxonMobil is proud to support HESTEC’s work.
The Hispanic population in the United States surpassed 44 million people last year and now represents 14 percent of the total U.S. population. But Hispanics represent only three percent of the total U.S. scientists and engineers. This situation must change. That is why HESTEC is such an important event and it is why I am with you today.
This year’s HESTEC theme “Inspiring the Next Generation of Explorers,” speaks to the urgent need for students, like many of you, to explore and pursue careers in high-technology fields.
The energy industry, my industry, understands this need, because we operate at the cutting edge of where new technology meets basic human needs.
It is an enormous industry. ExxonMobil is the largest publicly traded energy company in the world, yet even we only account for two percent of the world’s daily energy needs. As an industry, we face daily the technological and logistical challenge of delivering vast quantities of energy, safely and in an environmentally responsible manner, to consumers in the United States and around the world.
Our ability to continue meeting this daily challenge will depend on future innovations developed by new generations of explorers — including, I hope, some of you here today.
Energy and Technology
Many might not consider the energy industry as being particularly high-tech. The gasoline in your tank may not seem as sophisticated as the iPod in your pocket or the laptop computer at your desk. Even the terms “fossil fuels” and “crude oil” sound somewhat primitive.
This perception is partially driven by the fact that many people have little understanding of how the energy they consume, in so many forms, is provided to them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Believe it or not, some people think oil comes from a reservoir beneath every gas station, and electricity comes directly from behind the outlet in the wall! The ease, convenience and reliability with which people receive the energy they need is a tribute to an industry that for several decades has made an incredibly difficult job look so easy that today people take it for granted. And this almost century-long track record of good performance has led to a growing energy illiteracy in our country.
In reality, much of the energy used today comes from oil and natural gas found in extreme and challenging environments, such as the arctic regions of Russia’s Far East, the interior of Africa, and the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
The United States today imports oil from no less than 30 countries on six continents — which gives you an idea of the global nature of our industry and the challenge in meeting our everyday needs.
These oil and natural gas resources are often found in remote locations and must first be discovered, then produced, then refined and finally delivered across long distances and over enormous technical obstacles. State-of-the-art technologies are used every step of the way. The process can be long and complex — in fact, it can take up to ten years from the time the oil is discovered to when it is delivered to the gas station.
To develop these technologies, ExxonMobil alone employs 82,000 people — including over 14,000 engineers and scientists with expertise ranging from geology and geoscience to chemistry and marine biology. Our workforce draws upon some of the best minds from around the world, and includes many Hispanic scientists and engineers.
Energy innovations over time have been truly remarkable. It was one of the things that most attracted me to the industry when I graduated from Huntsville High School and then studied engineering at the University of Texas.
For example, in Russia, we have recently used new technology to drill a well one mile deep and over 7 miles horizontally, a new world record. The well is drilled from the shore, but the oil is far out at sea, deep below the ocean floor. Imagine drilling a well directly from here to a location underground, a mile underneath McAllen! Using this kind of technology, we can develop resources that were previously beyond our reach, and do so with only minimal environmental disruption.
Three-dimensional seismic mapping, invented by ExxonMobil, is another high-tech innovation. By using sound waves and the latest computing technologies, we can develop detailed pictures of complex rock formations deep beneath the surface without even drilling a well. This dramatically reduces the number of “dry holes,” the term we use for unsuccessful wells drilled.
Energy scientists and engineers have also developed processes to turn natural gas into a liquid by cooling it to temperatures as low as minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit — and then developed ways to safely transport this liquefied natural gas across thousands of miles of ocean to reach consumers here in the United States and elsewhere.
These are just a few examples of the technologies that drive the energy industry and are found at every link in the energy supply chain. A tremendous amount of technology goes into every gallon of fuel you buy at your local gas station.
Energy and the Future
Continuing the search for new energy technologies is vital to our future. Energy is essential to nearly all aspects of economic life, and it is a great enabler of human progress. It not only allows us to drive our cars, but also to cool our homes, cook our food, power our lights and perform countless other everyday tasks.
In developing regions like India and Africa, energy is vital to reducing poverty, preventing hunger, combating disease, and providing hope for a better future. Energy is an essential good for meeting basic human needs.
Each and every day, consumers worldwide use over 230 million barrels of energy. Oil alone is consumed at a rate of 40,000 gallons a second. In the brief time it takes me to deliver these remarks, 36 million gallons of oil will be used — enough to drive a car across the continental United States almost 200 thousand times.
This demand will increase in the future. In America today, there are on average 78 cars or light duty trucks for every 100 people. That is almost one per person. In China today, there is only one such vehicle for every 100 people. Understandably, people in China and other developing countries want lifestyles like the kind we enjoy here in the United States. As their economies grow to meet that expectation, it will have a major impact on the world’s overall demand for energy.
As the gap between developed and developing countries closes, energy demand will grow rapidly. By the year 2030, the world’s energy needs will be about 50 percent greater than they were in the year 2005.
To meet this rapidly growing demand, sustain our way of life, and lift living standards around the world, we will need to develop all the safe, reliable, and economic energy resources we can.
This includes sources like nuclear, wind, and solar energy, when they can be produced and delivered at a cost that people will pay. They play an important role in the energy mix. Hydrocarbons, like oil, natural gas and coal, play an even more important role, now and in the future. About 80 percent of the world’s current energy needs are met through these sources, and that percentage is expected to remain largely the same through at least the year 2030.
For this reason, it is important that we continue to find new and better ways to develop new supplies of energy and that we develop new technologies so that we can consume energy in ever more safe and environmentally responsible ways. As today’s students, you will help make that happen by exploring and pursuing a career in the energy field.
Skills and Values Needed to Compete
To enter the energy industry, like any high-technology field, you first have to master basic math and science. The algebra problems you solve today will help you solve the engineering, economic, and social problems of tomorrow. Math and science are the bedrock to build your career upon.
Unfortunately, fewer and fewer American students are choosing to study these subjects, and as a result, our nation’s leadership in technology is eroding. Two years ago, the National Academies conducted a study showing that the United States is losing its competitive edge because too few of your classmates are reaching the necessary proficiency in math and science and entering high-tech professions.
Out of 32 countries ranked between the years 2000 and 2003, the United States dropped five places to number 20 in undergraduate science degrees earned, and slipped six places to number 26 in undergraduate math degrees earned. Even more disturbing was the fact that almost one-third of American students entering high school have not achieved even a basic competency in math.
A new effort is underway to reverse this trend, led by the National Math and Science Initiative, or NMSI. By making successful programs available to high school students, like many of you, and to teachers nationwide, NMSI promises to help provide a new generation the math and science skills they need to succeed. ExxonMobil is proud to be its leading sponsor. We urge other corporations and the U.S. Congress to fund NMSI’s programs, also.
To succeed as a high-tech explorer requires more than strong technical skills — it requires strong values as well. A dedication to excellence in everything you do — a disciplined and efficient work ethic, a commitment to honesty and fair play, an intellectual curiosity for attempting new approaches to old problems, a willingness to learn from mistakes — knowing that behind every success are many failures and an appreciation for diverse views and the contributions that others can make to a winning team. These are values ExxonMobil and all successful high-tech companies prize.
One student of math and science who upholds these values is Keone Hon, this year’s national winner of the Hispanic Heritage Award in Engineering and Mathematics. In high school, he not only achieved high marks in his math and science classrooms, but also in his community through his volunteer activity. Keone just started his college career at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and ExxonMobil is proud to support his studies with a $15,000 grant.
Our industry and our country needs scientists and engineers with the right skills and values so that we can compete in today’s highly competitive world economy.
A solid education and strong ethics are great equalizers, allowing you to open doors that otherwise might be closed — and education and values are great enablers — allowing you to reach your career goals, whatever they may be.
Conclusion
I want to wrap-up with a story, and I am really speaking to you students — all of you — elementary, middle school, high school and university.
Thirty-two years ago, a young woman graduated from Grossmont High School in La Mesa, California with a passion for math and science. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in physics and a doctorate in electrical engineering from Stanford. Robots, similar to those at today’s expo, captured her imagination and became her area of expertise.
NASA, the space agency, saw her potential and hired her to conduct research in robotics. She later became an astronaut, and eventually logged nearly 1,000 hours in space on four Space Shuttle flights. On her last flight five years ago, she operated a robotic arm to help crew members walk in space.
The astronaut’s name is Ellen Ochoa, and she was the first Latina woman in space.
Perhaps one of you in today’s audience will become the Ellen Ochoa of your generation — an explorer who turned a life-long passion for math and science and a commitment to excellence and integrity into an exciting career in technology that made her nation proud and our world a better place.
The future challenges we face call for a new generation of explorers to conquer new frontiers not only high above the Earth, but on its surface, and deep below it, too. The energy industry is one high-technology field that offers great professional challenges and opportunities for those with the skills and the values to compete. But don’t just take it from me. Discover for yourself, and become part of the next generation of explorers.
Good luck to all of you, God bless and thank you for your kind attention.
