After years of working on polymer flooding and chemical EOR, I’ve come to believe that one of the biggest barriers to better oil recovery isn’t technical—it’s psychological and historical. That’s why I put together this presentation: to challenge the long-standing primary / secondary / tertiary model and show why polymer flooding deserves a seat at the table much earlier.
I’m making my slides available here for anyone who’s interested in moving the industry forward with scientifically sound, field-proven technologies.
In this presentation, I walk through:
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The current state of oil recovery—and why it’s not good enough
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How confirmation bias, framing, and legacy thinking have slowed EOR adoption
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Why calling polymer flooding “tertiary” is misleading and unproductive
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Field results (Hilcorp, Pelican Lake…) showing the success of early-stage polymer injection
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The real economics of polymer flooding vs. exploration
We’ve been injecting water since the 1920s and still only recover about 35% of oil in place. Meanwhile, polymer flooding has a proven track record—with over 80% success in field projects globally. So why do we wait until it’s almost too late to try it?
I believe it’s time to break the mold. This presentation is my contribution to that conversation
You can also check our YouTube channel for additional videos and podcasts and navigate the Polymer Flooding Guide for more content or our Academy for training courses.