Meet our Graduates

During his studies Ben completed several rounds of vacation work at Santos and worked with us part-time during his studies. He joined Santos in 2015 as a Graduate Field Support Engineer working a 2 week on 2 week off roster in our Roma gas field where he got hands on experience in operations. He then moved into a Reservoir Engineering where he worked on development drilling programs in Big Lake. Most recently he has moved into the Production Engineering team where he has been working on re-fracture stimulation trials for the cooper basin.

What has been your highlight of the Graduate Program?

Working as a Field Support Engineer in the Roma CSG field on a two weeks on, two weeks off roster. Not only did it give me hands on experience in operations, but it also gave me the opportunity to work with some amazing people out in the field. I often catch myself drawing upon the knowledge I gained in that environment in almost every major project I've worked on to date.

Recall a time you thought 'Wow'

I remember during the first batch of wells I ever drilled as a reservoir engineer / project lead, my wellsite geologist was also a fellow graduate. At that point in time, we were both making important observations and decisions that had a direct impact on the future outcomes for those wells. It was exciting to realise just how much responsibility we can be given early on in our careers, but it's that level of trust that motivates you to do the best you can in every project.

When have you felt most energised at Santos?

It's difficult to pinpoint a specific time because so many different experiences have captivated my enthusiasm along the way. It could be working with technology you've never seen before, the satisfaction of finally executing a project you've been working on for a long time, or even participating in social and community events as part of the company. Either way, it's important to use some of that energy to motivate other people in your teams as well as it's all part of building a positive work culture.

Originally from Canberra, Mattilda joined the Graduate program in 2015 after completing her Master's degree at the University of Canterbury, NZ. Prior to starting as a graduate Mattilda did vacation work in our Adelaide and Brisbane offices. As a graduate Geologist, Mattilda's first rotation saw her based at a well sites as an Operations Geologist, she has worked in Sedimentary and Petrology where she was exposed to different basins and sedimentological analysing techniques. Mattilda currently holds a position within our exploration and new ventures team. Later this year Mattilda will rotate into a development geology role in our Cooper Oil team.

What has been your highlight of the Graduate Program?

Field mapping in the Amadeus Basin, Northern Territory. Regional 2D Seismic was being shot across our permits and I was fortunate enough to go out to the field during this time and survey the outcropping geology. My role was to collect data and samples to help constrain our seismic interpretation and regional structural model. It was hot, hard work and the flies were unbearable but an incredible hands on experience that I will never forget.

When have you felt most challenged?

Recently I have been working in regional exploration as part of Santos' New Ventures Team. My role involves understanding the petroleum systems of frontier basins on a regional level, often with limited data. In a previous role I was conducting microscopic rock analysis, shifting from small scale studies to regional large scale assessments was a steep learning curve. However, I am surrounded by extremely experienced geoscientists who constantly support and mentor me along the way. With the guidance of my team I have learnt a lot about exploration in the petroleum industry.

When have you felt most energised at Santos?

Working in the Sedimentology and Petrology Team. Working in this role, I was exposed to different basins and sedimentological analysing techniques. I conducted rock typing, sedimentary logging, petrology, thin section analysis and Scale identification. I gained an appreciation on how the microscale analysis of rocks can provide answers to the much broader petroleum system.

Fiona joined Santos as a Graduate Engineer in 2013 and has had many unique experiences during her rotations. She began her Santos career in a Reservoir Engineering role in our Queensland development team before rotating into a Field Readiness Engineer role for the upstream development of the GLNG project, then progressed to an Upstream Operations Process Engineering role. Fiona made a move to downstream operations in 2015 where she spent 2 years in Gladstone constructing, commissioning then working in the operations of our GLNG LNG Plant. In her current role as a Process Engineer in the Energy Solutions team sees her working on energy efficiency projects across our operations where the goal is to reduce our carbon emissions.

What has been your highlight of the Graduate Program?

The highlight of my graduate program is really hard to choose. It's more the overall experience and all of the opportunities I've had, working with amazing people within Santos and from all over the world. I've worked from below ground, to wellhead surface facilities, through to the start-up, commissioning and operation of a world class, multi-billion dollar downstream facility and now have the opportunity to have a positive impact on how we operate and the environment. I don't think I could ever have expected to have a more diverse or rewarding graduate experience where coming to work has felt more like a hobby than a job.

Recall a time you thought 'Wow'

Sitting in the middle of the control room on Curtis Island at 4am on a Wednesday morning with our small commissioning and start-up team for Train 2 and seeing the first level reading on the LNG flash drum. It was an indescribable feeling to know we'd safely achieved first LNG after months of hard work and long hours.