May 23, 2016. INTERA has acquired CR Petroleum Optimization Technologies Inc. to expand the company’s capabilities in the energy sector. Also based in Austin, Texas, CR Petroleum Optimization Technologies provides production optimization services and software to the oil and gas industry. CR Petroleum Optimization Technologies’ software combines data-driven analytics with physical reservoir engineering principles to increase profitability of oil recovery projects by identifying inefficiencies in operations for conventional and unconventional applications. The software is based on the Capacitance Resistance Modeling (CRM) algorithm developed by Dr. Larry W. Lake, co-founder of the company and holder of the Sharon and Shahid Ullah Endowed Chair in Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. Mr. Emilio Núñez, Assistant Director of Research Relations at The University of Texas at Austin, and Dr. Lake formed CR Petroleum Optimization Technologies in 2010 to commercialize the CRM optimization software and provide reservoir engineering services to industry clients. “CRM is uniquely positioned as a technology to optimize reservoir performance using data that are already being measured and reported without the need for prior geologic characterization or any additional data collection,” said Dr. Lake. “INTERA began as an offshoot of a petroleum reservoir consulting company in 1974 but we are more widely known as a groundwater consulting firm. CR Petroleum Optimization Technologies’ expertise identifies the changes needed to increase oil production while minimizing the use of water, a perfect fit for a company like ours,” said Marsh Lavenue, INTERA’s president and CEO. The acquisition is part of a larger growth strategy INTERA set out several years ago. The company is currently in discussions with several other US firms about potential acquisitions. As part of the transaction, CR Petroleum Optimization Technologies has changed its name to INTERA Petroleum Consultants (INTERA Petroleum) and will operate as a subsidiary of INTERA. Lake will serve as INTERA Petroleum’s Chief Technology Officer and provide technical leadership for reservoir engineering projects. Núñez will serve as Vice President of Technical Services. Ms. Kimberly Gordon, a Principal Engineer and Geoscientist at INTERA for the past two years, will serve as Vice President of Business Development for INTERA Petroleum.