Texas Oil Regulator, Uni Team Up for Inspector Training

The Texas Railroad Commission (RRC) announced, in a statement posted on its website recently, that it has partnered with Texas Tech University’s Bob L. Herd Department of Petroleum Engineering to launch the RRC Field Inspector Training program.

The RRC outlined that the development is part of its “ongoing effort to further strengthen staff expertise” and said the new initiative is designed to enhance the professional development of its oil and gas inspectors.

“After nearly a year of development and coordination, the first class of inspectors attended the four-day course held July 27-30 at the school’s Oilfield Technology Center in Lubbock,” the RRC revealed in the statement.

“The new program represents a major advancement for the RRC, eliminating the need for inspectors to travel out of state for this specialized training by bringing it to Texas for the first time,” it added.

“The state of the art center features a dedicated classroom, a shop equipped with oil and gas equipment cutaways and models and an outdoor training space with production facilities, a pumping unit, gas compressors, and a drilling rig,” it continued.

The RRC stated that the course provides new or early career inspectors with an enhanced, hands-on learning experience designed to help them better understand the equipment and environment that they will encounter in the field.

“Utilizing the world-class educational tools available at the facility, the training includes demonstrations of a variety of equipment, including the center’s fully functional drilling rig, as well as training sessions covering key stages of a well’s lifecycle, such as cementing, blowout prevention, and well plugging,” it said.

The RRC revealed in its statement that the RRC Training Development is currently crafting a similar course for inspectors in the Commission’s Critical Infrastructure Division.

“This training program further strengthens our field inspectors by providing them with the skills and knowledge needed to perform their jobs at the highest level,” Wei Wang, Executive Director of the RRC, said in the statement.

“Partnerships among Texas institutions are critical to advancing the work we do and serving the people of our state. We are proud to partner with Texas Tech to enhance inspector training and help ensure the continued protection of Texas’ natural resources and communities,” Wang added.

“I thank Texas Tech for their commitment to this important effort,” Wang continued.

In a statement posted on Texas Tech University’s website, the university confirmed that the Bob L. Herd Department of Petroleum Engineering within the Edward E. Whitacre Jr. College of Engineering at the university and RRC were collaborating “to deliver specialized workforce development training for that state’s oil and gas inspectors”.

The training is being held at the petroleum engineering department’s Oilfield Technology Center, located just east of the Fiber & Biopolymer Research Institute in east Lubbock, this statement highlighted, noting that the center is a unique, 10-acre facility designed to bridge classroom learning with real-world application.

“This hands-on environment allows inspectors to gain practical experience in a controlled and safe setting, enhancing their ability to oversee operations across Texas,” the statement noted.

Texas Tech said in the statement that it hopes this initiative marks the beginning of a long-term relationship with the RRC and other industry partners, “further strengthening its role in advancing energy education and training in Texas”.

“This partnership represents a meaningful step forward in how we connect education, industry, and regulation,” Marshall Watson, chairman of the petroleum engineering department at Texas Tech, said in the statement.

“By providing hands-on training in a realistic environment, we’re helping inspectors build the skills they need to ensure safe and efficient energy operations across Texas,” he added.

Roland Faller, dean of the College of Engineering, said, “practical workforce training for the people of Texas; this is what makes Texas Tech special”.

In a statement posted on its website last month, the RRC revealed that it “once again” set a new attendance record at its 2026 Regulatory Conference, which it described as the agency’s premier annual educational event.

The conference welcomed more than 1,100 attendees and over 60 exhibitors, according to the statement, which revealed that the event brought together stakeholders from across the oil and gas regulatory community, including operators, industry experts, state and federal regulators, and other energy professionals.

More than 90 educational sessions were offered throughout the three-day conference, the statement revealed.

“We’re honored to bring together legislative, regulatory and industry leaders for meaningful discussions alongside the world-class educational sessions our Regulatory Conference has become known for,” Wang said in this statement.

“This conference provides an invaluable opportunity for stakeholders across the energy industry to collaborate, share ideas and help shape effective energy regulation in Texas,” Wang added.

“As the conference continues to grow, we’re grateful for the strong participation and look forward to building on this momentum in 2027 to further strengthen effective energy regulation in Texas,” Wang continued.

The RRC announced back in April that, on April 3, it celebrated a “major milestone, marking 135 years of service as the state’s oldest regulatory agency”. 

“Since its founding in 1891, the Commission has guided Texas through many significant periods of change, from its initial role regulating a rapidly expanding railroad system, to the oil boom of the early 20th century, and, more recently, the shale boom of the 2000s,” that statement noted.

“With primary oversight and enforcement over the state’s oil and gas industry, intrastate pipelines, alternative fuels safety, natural gas utilities and surface mining, the Commission plays a vital role in environmental safety and energy development for the betterment of all Texans,” it added.

In this statement, Wang said, “as we celebrate this anniversary, I invite you to reflect on the legacy of the RRC”.

“For more than a century, the agency’s hard work has helped shape Texas into the energy leader that it is today, an essential pillar of our state’s economy and a foundation for our nation’s energy independence and security,” Wang added.

“As we look to the future, we remain committed to our mission of protecting public safety and the environment,” Wang went on to state.

The Texas RRC notes on its site that it is the state agency with primary regulatory jurisdiction over the oil and natural gas industry, pipeline transporters, natural gas and hazardous liquid pipeline industry, natural gas utilities, the LP-gas industry, critical natural gas infrastructure, and coal and uranium surface mining operations.

The commission exists under provisions of the Texas Constitution and exercises its statutory responsibilities under state and federal laws for regulation and enforcement of the state’s energy industries, the site adds, noting that the commission also has regulatory and enforcement responsibilities under federal law including the Surface Coal Mining Control and Reclamation Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Pipeline Safety Acts, Resource Conservation Recovery Act, and Clean Water Act.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com