Lead Geoscientist

Job Family Group:

Subsurface Group

Job Description:

bpx energy, a major oil and gas producer in the United States, leverages its expertise in unconventional gas, including shale, to deliver hydrocarbon production and technical knowledge worldwide. With operations in Texas and Louisiana, our US onshore business has become both a premier oil and gas producer and a leader in reducing methane emissions.

As part of BP, a global industry leader, we foster a high-energy, high-intensity environment built on accountability, collegiality, innovation, and empowerment. At bpx, we support our people to learn and grow in a diverse and challenging environment where collaboration, continuous improvement, and inclusion are valued.

Discover your place with us and help our business meet the challenges of reimagining and reinventing the future of energy.

Role Synopsis

The South Texas Development Geoscientist is a Lead-level individual contributor within the Eagle Ford Development team at bpx Energy, supporting delivery of a multi-rig development program and helping shape subsurface plans, priorities, and technical workflows across the asset.

The ideal candidate brings a minimum of 15 years of progressively increasing geoscience experience, including unconventional development, operations support, development planning, well planning, subsurface characterization, and integrated reservoir understanding. The successful candidate combines deep technical expertise with strong commercial acumen, consistently making value-driven recommendations that balance technical risk, capital efficiency, production outcomes, and long-term asset objectives.

This role is expected to operate with significant independence, provide technical advice and guidance within the agreed asset strategy, build effective networks across disciplines, mentor and develop others, and contribute to annual plans, priorities, and budget decisions for a small operational area or major development program.

Key Accountabilities

• Lead resource progression by identifying, framing, and recommending optimization opportunities, appraisal strategies, and development concepts that increase hydrocarbon reserves, production output, capital efficiency, and program repeatability.
• Provide technical leadership for development planning in support of a multi-rig program, including subsurface attribute mapping, portfolio high grading, well placement, target zone strategy, competitor performance assessment, and integration of uncertainty into development choices.
• Develop and influence surveillance and data acquisition plans, including fit-for-purpose technology assessment, cost-efficient acquisition strategies, and interpretation workflows that de-risk appraisal and development plans while maximizing return on investment.
• Own or coordinate complex geologic and geophysical evaluations where the technical problem is clear but the approach is not, selecting appropriate methods, techniques, evaluation criteria, and integrated workflows to reach defendable recommendations.
• Apply commercial acumen to technical recommendations by integrating subsurface uncertainty, capital efficiency, production impact, operational risk, schedule, and strategic value into development decisions and tradeoff discussions.
• Lead geological operations planning and execution, including pre-spud risk assessment, geohazard identification and mitigation, offset event correlation, target window protocols, survey frequency protocols, data acquisition programs, and tool-failure contingency protocols.
• Guide integration of drilling, completions, reservoir, production, and subsurface data to diagnose performance drivers, evaluate repeatability, identify risk, and recommend changes to plans, procedures, or development practices.
• Create and improve geoscience workflows, standards, and procedures where needed, including mapping practices, operational readiness checks, geosteering handoffs, data quality expectations, and post-well lookbacks.
• Develop, maintain, and build formal working networks across Subsurface Technology, Land, Reservoir Engineering, Drilling, Completions, Regulatory, Facilities, Finance, Legal, Operations, and external technical providers to align plans, resolve issues, and deliver integrated outcomes.
• Mentor and develop geoscience capability across the asset by providing technical coaching, facilitating knowledge transfer, reviewing technical work, supporting onboarding and development of less experienced staff, and promoting continuous improvement of geoscience practices.
• Provide ongoing coaching, mentoring, technical review, and practical guidance to geoscientists, geo-steerers, vendors, and cross-functional partners; serve as a recognized technical resource and role model for collaboration, technical rigor, and development of organizational capability.
• Communicate key findings, uncertainties, recommendations, and trade-offs clearly to technical peers, functional leaders, and decision-makers, including written and verbal reports that support annual planning, prioritization, and execution.

Essential Experience and Education

• Master of Science in Geology, Geophysics, Earth Science, or related technical field, or equivalent relevant professional qualification and experience.
• Minimum 15 years of industry experience with demonstrated success across unconventional reservoir development, operations, development and evaluation planning, detailed mapping, petrophysical interpretation, and integrated subsurface characterization.
• Demonstrated ability to resolve complex, ambiguous, and cross-functional subsurface issues through in-depth evaluation of variable factors and integrated data sets.
• Proven ability to act independently on new or special assignments, determine methods and procedures, and exercise sound judgment in selecting technical approaches and evaluation criteria.
• Experience contributing to or leading substantial aspects of major projects, programs, or processes, including resource coordination, progress tracking, goal attainment, and alignment with business priorities.
• Demonstrated commercial acumen with the ability to evaluate opportunities through a value-based lens, integrating technical, operational, financial, risk, and strategic considerations into recommendations and decision-making.
• Proven history of influencing development plans and investment decisions by clearly articulating technical and economic tradeoffs, uncertainties, and business impacts to stakeholders and leadership teams.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor, coach, and develop geoscientists and cross-disciplinary professionals through technical guidance, knowledge sharing, constructive feedback, and active support of capability development.
• Recognized as a trusted technical resource who strengthens organizational capability by promoting best practices, fostering collaboration, and elevating the technical quality of work products across teams.
• Strong track record of collaborating across disciplines and building effective networks with internal and external technical partners to drive integrated outcomes.
• Ability to provide advice and guidance within agreed policy, strategy, and business rules, and to establish recommendations that support annual plans, priorities, and budgets for a small operational area or development program.
• Personal commitment to health, safety, environment, laws, regulations, ethics, and compliance principles.
• Advanced skills in geoscience interpretation software, with Petrel preferred; experience with geosteering software, with StarSteer preferred.
• Demonstrated leadership through consistent application of BPX IMPACT principles, while serving as a role model who develops others, drives business performance, and fosters a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, and trust.
• Demonstrated use of IMPACT principles: Innovation, Motivated, Performance Driven, Accountable, Collaborative, and Trustworthy.

Desirable Criteria

• Eagle Ford or South Texas unconventional development experience.
• Operations and/or geosteering experience, including vendor coordination and real-time decision support.
• Working familiarity with reservoir, drilling, completions, facilities, and production engineering workflows.
• Hands-on experience with data visualization tools, with Power BI preferred.
• Hands-on experience with database and web applications, with Enverus preferred.
• Experience using data analytics, automation, or integrated dashboards to improve development planning, surveillance interpretation, or operational decision quality.
• Experience mentoring others, leading technical workstreams, or coordinating multi-disciplinary workflows without direct reporting authority.

Compensation & Benefits

How much do we pay (Base)?

$213,000-$250,000

Note that the pay range listed for this position is a good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible base compensation at the time of posting.

We offer a reward and wellbeing package designed to support your life both inside and outside of work. Benefits may include:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Paid time off
• Discretionary annual bonus program
• Long-term incentive program
• 401(k) matching program

Legal authorization requirements:

Must be legally authorized to work full-time in the United States for any employer other than your current employer

Must not require sponsorship now or in the future for employment visa status (e.g., H-1B, TN, etc.)

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to participate in the application or interview process, perform essential job functions, and receive other employment benefits and privileges. Please contact us to request accommodations.

Travel Requirement:

Negligible travel should be expected with this role

Relocation Assistance:

This role is not eligible for relocation

Remote Type:

This position is a hybrid of office/remote working

Skills:

Basin resource evaluation, Basin resource evaluation, CO2 utilisation and storage, Core acquisition and analysis, Cost-conscious decision-making, Data acquisition strategy, Data Management, Depositional framework, Fluid Properties, Fluid sampling and analysis, Geodesy and coordinate integrity, Geohazard Assessment, Geomechanical analysis, Integrated Well Delivery, Operations Geology, Petroleum Systems Analysis, Petrophysical Dynamic Reservoir Description, Petrophysical Seismic Lithology and Fluid Prediction, Petrophysical Static Reservoir Description, PPFG detection, Research and Development, Reservoir geomechanics, Reservoir quality, Seismic Interpretation, Seismic stratigraphic interpretation {+ 6 more}

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Legal Disclaimer:

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, socioeconomic status, neurodiversity/neurocognitive functioning, veteran status or disability status. Individuals with an accessibility need may request an adjustment/accommodation related to bp’s recruiting process (e.g., accessing the job application, completing required assessments, participating in telephone screenings or interviews, etc.). If you would like to request an adjustment/accommodation related to the recruitment process, please contact us.

If you are selected for a position and depending upon your role, your employment may be contingent upon adherence to local policy. This may include pre-placement drug screening, medical review of physical fitness for the role, and background checks.