HAROLD KORELL ’68
PE Hall of Fame Class of 2024
Harold Korell’s contributions to Mines and the industry are unparalleled. He drove the turnaround of Southwest Energy though his leadership and discovery of the Fayetteville Shale in north-central Arkansas that grew to production of 2.6 billion cubic feet of gas a day.
Korell earned his professional degree in chemical and petroleum refining engineering in 1968 from Mines, where he played varsity basketball and was a member of Beta Theta Pi.
His career included stints with Tenneco Oil, Mobil, McCormick Resources and American Exploration Co. before moving up through management with Southwestern Energy, where he grew the company from a market cap of $187 million to an incredible $17 billion.
Korell served Mines as a member of the Board of Trustees and Board of Governors and earned the Coolbaugh Memorial Award, Tourmaline Award and Distinguished Achievement Medal. He and his wife named the Harold and Patricia Korell Athletic Center at the Clear Creek Athletics Complex and Southwestern Energy Lobby in Marquez Hall in addition to establishing several endowed scholarships.
Contributions to Mines & Awards
- Petroleum Engineering Department Visiting Committee
- Chairman of the President’s Council, Houston
- Reunion Giving Program Committee
Industry Boards
- California Resources Corporation
- American Exploration and Production Council
- National Petroleum Council
- Independent Petroleum Association of America
- America’s Natural Gas Alliance
Industry Awards
- U.S. Steel Tubular Products Chief Roughneck Award
- Executive of the Year by Oil and Gas Investor magazine
Professional Societies
- Society of Petroleum Engineers
- Independent Petroleum Association of America
- Founding member of America’s Natural Gas Alliance
Contribution to Society
- Board of trustees of the Baylor College of Medicine
- Dean’s Advisory Board of the Walton College at the University of Arkansas
- Started the Harold and Patricia Korell Foundation in 2012