It’s not a secret that the oil industry is experiencing a historic pricing downturn. Supply, demand, difficult politics and the mere fact that oil reserves are finite resources all mean we’ll be looking at a very different oil industry just a few years from now.
The companies that survive this difficult investment cycle will be those that seized upon emerging technologies to run leaner operations and make the most of limited resources and capital. Let’s take a look at some of the most promising technologies right now.
Drones
Many of us know about drones from their hobbyist applications — maybe you’ve taken aerial photographs of your own neighborhood already. Drones are far more than a consumer-level technology, though. They’re also an increasingly important part of industries of all kinds, including oil and gas.
Remote-operated drones are great platforms for pressure, chemical and temperature sensors. Sending them as advance scouts into potentially hazardous areas keeps human personnel safe and sound, which is where they belong. Even less risky operations, like location scouting and facility management, are vastly easier and cheaper to perform thanks to drones.
Satellites
Geostationary, medium and low earth orbit satellites provide “always on” connectivity, which is hugely important in such a geographically diverse industry. Digital strategies will become even more important to oil companies in the near future as connected technologies allow us to trade information with partners sometimes great distances away or in locations with difficult weather conditions. Ordinary connectivity technologies often don’t cut it anymore now that the elements within an operation can’t afford to be out of contact with one another even briefly.
Satellites power our accumulation and analysis of geospatial data, which helps us continually improve our understanding of topography and terrain and how they relate to our industry needs. Property and asset management — up to and including mapmaking and terrain stability assessments — have never been more vital in oil production, and satellite technology makes it better all the time.
Better Drilling and Pipeline Technologies
Even as state and national governments make moves to divest themselves from financial interests in, or dependence on, traditional oil and gas, the industry nevertheless has spent the last several years innovating at a rapid clip to ensure profitability among falling earnings and production. It might not seem like it, but even variations in the number and composition of pipe sections in pipelines can result in enormous cost savings.
Another pain point in the industry is downtime for machinery in need of repair or refurbishment. A number of critical but unheralded parts within drills and pumps — notably mud motor bearing assemblies — also see regular innovation to make them better able to keep our machines running and our operations moving smoothly.
Given that the industry must continually evaluate new sites — many of which are located in challenging or unfriendly conditions — more robust drilling mechanisms and protective components ensure steady production with fewer stoppages for failed or overworked machinery.
It should also be noted that so-called “transition fuels” like natural gas are, themselves, being used in drilling for oil. Whereas oil drilling once required massive diesel-powered pumps, natural gas-powered alternatives can now capably perform much of the same work.
Automation
The arrival of automation in scalable enterprises like manufacturing and oil drilling will not happen without a cost measured in human jobs. It will create new subject-matter fields and new college majors, but certain types of work just won’t come back. Many of those jobs are in the oil industry.
Consider the risk inherent in offshore drilling operations. Uncertain weather plus manifold other heavy machinery and environmental factors make drilling facilities prime candidates for automation. Beyond the cost savings thanks to reduced labor, oil and gas operations also gain the benefit of placing fewer human bodies in harm’s way.
Cloud Computing
The cloud doesn’t seem like an obvious fit for oil and gas at first, but industry innovators are already seeing its potential.
McDermott International long ago recognized the importance of technology in their culture and recently began rolling out a cloud-powered software suite which, in their own words, will improve efficiency and productivity. At a time when profit margins are thinner than ever, McDermott and others in the industry see the potential in using omnipresent cloud technologies to facilitate communication all along the supply chain, including drilling, transportation, facility management and more.
Innovation Benefits Oil Drillers and the Rest of the Industry
To be sure, no matter what innovations technology delivers in the near future, the oil industry is in store for uncertainty. It is abundantly clear that oil and gas are getting more expensive to produce, not less. That has lots of folks worrying over skyrocketing prices. We’re not just talking the price for a barrel of conventional oil, either, but also all of the products in which oil is a critical ingredient or facilitator. Think plastic products, industrial lubricants, asphalt and other fuels we rely on daily.
Thankfully, the entire industry has turned its attention toward waste reduction and efficiency improvements. If the movers and shakers in this field take innovation seriously, say experts, there’s no reason to see unnecessarily ballooning prices. All our technology is intended to reduce some kind of effort in some way, after all — why should that reality be any different for the world’s second most profitable commodity?