Autry Stephens Receives Distinguished Engineering Award
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April 22, 2014
Every year at spring commencement, The University of Texas at Austin's Cockrell School of Engineering honors its alumni with the Distinguished Engineering Awards, the highest honor the Cockrell School bestows on its alumni.
Established in 1957, the Distinguished Engineering Graduate Award (DEG) recognizes honorees as highly respected professionals, dedicated engineers and supporters of higher education. Including this year's honorees, 260 alumni have been selected for this prestigious award.
A UT PGE alumnus is among this year's five honorees. Autry Stephens has made a significant impact on the oil and gas industry with his clear vision and leadership.
Stephens is the president and CEO of Endeavor Energy Resources L.P. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in petroleum engineering, both from The University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering, in 1961 and 1962, respectively.
Stephens, who grew up on a farm in DeLeon, Texas, has a deep appreciation for his education and believes it set the foundation for his success.
Following graduation, Stephens began his career with Humble Oil & Refining Company. After seven years, including a two-year leave of absence while serving in the Army, he joined the First National Bank of Midland as an appraisal engineer. In 1979, he became an independent consulting petroleum engineer.
Stephens gradually moved from consulting to drilling and operating oil wells. He now operates numerous companies under the umbrella of Endeavor Energy Resources, which has more than 4,700 oil wells and is listed among the Top 20 oil producers in Texas.
Big Dog Drilling, which is affiliated with Endeavor Energy Resources, was started in 1996, and now owns 25 drilling rigs. In 2008, the employees of Big Dog Drilling turned into reality TV stars when TRU-TV asked them to be in a series called “Black Gold.” The show, which completed its fifth season in 2013, attempts to shine a light on the hard-working men and women in the oil fields. Stephens, who has a cameo role in the show, thought it was important to show the public the difficulty of extracting oil.
Stephens has also provided services in the areas of well servicing, roustabouts, wireline, welding, directional drilling services, well stimulation, new and used pipe services, water hauling and disposal, hot oiling, oil and gas transportation, and marketing. Through Endeavor Energy Resources and its umbrella companies, Stephens has helped to create 1,800 jobs, primarily in the Midland-Odessa area.
