Dr. Pedro Pereira's Background

Graduated as a Chemist in 1976 and obtained a doctorate in Heterogeneous catalysis, both from L'Universite de Poitiers, France, in 1979. Was a chemical engineering professor at the "Universidad de Los Andes" in Merida-Venezuela for seven years, a postdoctoral fellow at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory-University of California, Berkeley during the period Oct.1987-Dec.1990. He has since dedicated his professional and research activities to catalysts and catalytic processes development using both steam and hydrogen for heavy oils and residuals upgrading.

Dr. Pereira has also published on the Hydrogen generation from coal steam gasification and patented first on a catalyst for methane coupling, to produce Ethylene/ethane. Author of more than 60 published articles and presentations, more than 10 International Conferences and Seminars, he dedicated 14 years as a Research and Development Leader at a major Petroleum corporation where he co-invented and coordinated the development of the two major competitive upgrading technologies, named Aquaconversion and HDHplus.

Dr. Pereira has 7 patents on the areas and processes above mentioned. Between 1999 and 2002, he gained technology business and management experience as well as knowledge in technology strategic planning. His activities nowadays pursue significant improvements to the upgrading of Athabasca bitumen and other Alberta and Canadian heavy oils by combining research in applied catalysis targeting specifically designed catalysts, with research of upgrading processes integrated with the selective separation and conversion of coke precursor molecules from selective deasphalting and gasification. This has the potential to generate technology commercialization that will promote cost-effective conversion of the bitumen and heavy oil reserves in Canada and throughout the world into valuable products.