How AI is transforming the Oil & Gas Industry
The global environmental crisis is growing in scale and intensity. The oil and gas business is not exempt from the need to reduce emissions, improve energy efficiency, and expand sustainable activities. According to Strategic Gears' research, artificial intelligence could be important to fixing this problem – increasing efficiency and lowering emissions while also allowing for the scaling of new renewable energy options.
Saudi Arabia is one of the countries spearheading the decarbonisation push, particularly through the Saudi and Middle East Green Initiatives, which aim to reduce carbon emissions by 60% through clean hydrogen technology, among other things.
Similarly, as part of its 2050 net-zero strategic effort, the UAE recently revealed intentions to invest $163 billion in clean and renewable energy over the next three decades.
However, in order for such scenarios to play out as planned and for sustainability frameworks to achieve their full potential, oil and gas businesses must first be capable of making significant contributions.
The significance of AI in achieving net zero impact in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors
To meet these environmental goals, oil and gas companies must increase operating efficiency, enhance resource utilization, and eventually reduce waste - all of which can be aided by AI in three ways:
1. Business monitoring
Because of the speed and accuracy of AI processing, massive volumes of data can be input and analyzed in minutes, resulting in results that would have taken months to produce previously. This not only provides essential insight for firms tracking their performance, transformation programs, or carbon footprints, but it also frees up human talent to focus on higher-value activities.
2. Optimised carbon capture
Other new AI and related technologies that can assist oil and gas firms in lowering costs along their distribution chain include robotics, drones, autonomous systems, and sensors. Because corporations must invest money elsewhere in their net zero transitions, this may relieve strain on investment budgets (and bottom lines).
3. Scaling green hydrogen
AI can assist oil and gas companies scale their objectives in growing sectors like hydrogen, in addition to reducing emissions. Demonstrating the potential – according to Facts and Factors, income from the green hydrogen sector is predicted to increase from $755 million in 2020 to $1.4 billion in 2026.
As the world's reliance on oil and gas declines in the future years, demand for alternative fuels like hydrogen will rise, and hydrogen's use in the energy industry is already gaining pace. Notably, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah University of Science and Technology is developing unique AI algorithms for process control and optimization, which will eventually aid oil and gas companies in producing green hydrogen.
Beyond sustainability
AI, aside from contributing to sustainability, has a slew of other advantages. It also allows oil and gas companies to improve market forecasting, strengthen safety measures, and identify untapped resources, among other things, all of which can lead to increased efficiency and bottom lines.
