PetroStrat will attend and sponsor the North American Micropaleontology Section 2026 NAMS Microfossils conference, held 8-11 April in Austin, Texas. Paul Cornick (Managing Director) and Martha Gibson (Staff Palynologist) will also present cutting-edge research on the latest advances in Wilcox Group zonation and some innovative new insights into the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM)
We are proud to support this technical event as a gold sponsor, alongside companies and foundations committed to the continued technical advancement of micropalaeontology within the energy sector.
PetroStrat Presentation : Innovative new insights into the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM)
Presentation title: Palynological Evidence for a Hugely Expanded Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) Succession in the Western Gulf of Mexico
Authors: Paul Cornick1 , Neil Campion1 , Marisa Borges1 , Martha Gibson1 , Iain Prince2 , Rebecca Hackworth3
1PetroStrat, 2Shell International Exploration & Production, 3Chevron Centre of Excellence
Date: Thursday 9th April 2026
Time: 3.10pm
PetroStrat Presentation : Cutting-edge research on the latest advances in Wilcox Group zonation
Presentation title: A Palynological Zonation for the Early Eocene to Paleocene Wilcox Group in and around the GoM
Authors: Neil Campion1, Marisa Borges1, Paul Cornick1 , Martha Gibson1, Iain Prince2 , Rebecca Hackworth3
1PetroStrat, 2Shell International Exploration & Production, 3Chevron Centre of Excellence
Date: Thursday 9th April
Time: 2.10pm
Short bio of the PetroStrat authors
Paul Cornick (Presenting)
Paul Cornick is a founding director and current Managing Director of PetroStrat Ltd and President of PetroStrat Inc. With over 35 years in the energy industry he is a prominent stratigrapher, with a deep technical expertise of North Sea and Gulf of Mexico palynology. Paul is proud to apply his industry and geological knowledge to explore new opportunities in emerging markets and the Energy Transition.
Martha Gibson (Presenting)
Martha Gibson joined PetroStrat in April 2024 and is now based out of our Houston office. With over 10 years experience, she now works on the palynology and biostratigraphy of Cenozoic sections from the Gulf of Mexico, and Palaeozoic sections of North America, offshore Norway, the Barents Sea, North America, and the Middle East. She is fully certified for offshore work and has conducted wellsite palynology in the offshore USA (Gulf of Mexico).
Marisa Borges
Marisa joined PetroStrat in March 2012 after submitting her Ph.D. in Geology at the University of the Algarve, Portugal. For the last 14 years, Marisa has been working on the palynology and biostratigraphy of Tertiary sections from Gulf of Mexico, Upper Cretaceous sections from West Africa and Jurassic sections from the North Sea, South America and Middle East (Qatar). Fully certified for offshore work, she has already conducted wellsite palynology in offshore USA (Gulf of Mexico) and North Sea.
Neil Campion
Neil Campion has over 35 years of experience in palynology. He has considerable experience in North Sea and Gulf of America palynology and has been key in the development and application to high resolution palynological zonation schemes driving the stratigraphic understanding of Cenozoic sediments from a regional to field wide scale.
PetroStrat – Providing Detailed Subsurface Insight Through Integrated Geosciences Services
Our Houston office provides specialised regional services for operators across North America and the Gulf of Mexico. Since the acquisition of Paleo-Data in 2022, we offer the largest single-source biostratigraphic datasets for the region.
Our integrated geoscience services provide our clients with:
- High-resolution stratigraphic frameworks for precise age dating
- Reduced subsurface uncertainty through the integration of micro, nanno, and paly data
- Optimisation of well placement and reservoir correlation
- Extract detailed multidisciplinary data fromcore and cuttings samples
- Support for traditional exploration and Energy Transition projects
Unrivalled Expertise in the Gulf of Mexico and North America
PetroStrat possesses extensive regional experience delivering technical solutions for offshore and onshore projects. Our team provides the stratigraphic expertise required to navigate the unique challenges of North American basins.
We have experience across:
- Gulf of Mexico (Shelf and Deepwater)
- South Louisiana (Onshore)
- Texas Gulf Coast
- Mexico (Tampico-Misantla and Sureste Basins)
- US Mid-Continent
Connect With Us in Austin
We look forward to connecting with you in Austin to discuss how our biostratigraphic expertise can de-risk your operations. To arrange a meeting with our team during the workshop, please use our website contact form.
Everything you need to know about NAMS 2026
Conference: 2026 NAMS Microfossils V
Theme: Geologic Problem Solving with Microfossils
Location: Austin, Texas
Venue: J. J. Pickle Research Campus, The University of Texas at Austin
Date: 8 – 11 April 2026
