Kuwait City, 24 Sept: Petroleum Engineering students from Australian University (AU) recently participated in the inaugural Neutrality Cup Competition organized by the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA). The event, themed “Shaping a Sustainable Future with Innovative Solutions”, was held in Bahrain. AU’s team made their mark, clinching the third spot in this prestigious and innovative competition. The AU team consisted of students, Faisal Al Balool and Abdullah Al Rabaie, supervised by Dr. Jean El Achkar, Assistant Professor of Petroleum Engineering at AU.

The competition, which took place from the 5^th to the 7^th of September 2023 in Manama, gathered industrialists, stakeholders, and participants from 15 prominent universities across the GCC region. Initiated by the GPCA Youth Council, the GPCA Carbon Neutrality Cup aims to foster the development of science-based carbon neutrality solutions, bridging the gap between the chemical industry and academia. In its inaugural edition, the competition garnered several innovative projects from senior undergraduate and postgraduate STEM students from various universities across the GCC region.

The students' journey involved presenting their projects in a presentation session by delivering a 10-minute oral presentation before a substantial audience, which included an eminent panel of industry experts who critically evaluated their work by engaging in discussions and inquiries, and thus enhancing the competitive spirit of the event.

Reflecting on this achievement, Dr. El Achkar said: “The achievement signifies the culmination of the dedicated research efforts of AU towards integrating its students into faculty-led research initiatives and has yielded outstanding outcomes, the competition brought together STEM students, industry leaders and academia to share knowledge and inspire one another. I congratulate our students and all participants and wish them all a successful future.”