Dr. Mishal Al-Harbi is COO of Research Product Development Co., a subsidiary of Taqnia Holding and a Public Investment Fund company.
The company has worked with Saudi Arabia’s national R&D centers and universities since 2014 to commercialize advanced Saudi technology innovations and IP, and to support the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goal to lead the way in innovative technologies.
Previously, Al-Harbi held the position of COO of Saudi Aramco Upstream Technology Co. and was chief technologist at Aramco’s Upstream R&D.
Between 2006 and 2008, Al-Harbi was a member of Saudi Arabia’s negotiation team for the Partitioned Neutral Zone Due Diligence and Concession Extension.
Al-Harbi has extensive experience in the upstream oil and gas business where he led engineering teams developing oil and gas fields both onshore and offshore), reservoir management, production engineering, reserve assessment, and production planning of Saudi Aramco oil and gas fields portfolio.
He was a member of the team that established King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center between 2008 and 2010, where he held the position of director of energy technology and environmental research.
Al-Harbi, along with the founding team, helped to accelerate the development of the center to be the first national energy think tank and to position Saudi Arabia as a global thought leader in energy policy and strategy development. It enabled the Kingdom to assume its role in setting and influencing global energy policies.
Al-Harbi worked on developing the center’s institutional strategy, strategic partnerships, International Advisory Board, research program and inaugural research projects.
He attained his bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, in 1994, and a master’s degree in the same field from Stanford University, US, in 1998.
He also received a Ph.D. in petroleum engineering with a focus on large-scale optimization and risk modeling of uncertainty in hydrocarbon development from Texas A&M University, US, in 2005.
