How the Internet of Things (IoT) is Revolutionizing the Oil and Gas Sector
The application of digital
technology in the oil and gas industry offers significant opportunities for
these sectors to streamline their production and increase revenues. The
operation strategies of oil and gas companies are in serious need of an overhaul,
given that the price per barrel for these fuel sources has been cut in half
over the past few years. The application of digital technology like IoT can
make the sector once again into a profitable industry by interconnecting assets
and collect data to optimize upstream and downstream processes.
IT solutions for the oil and gas
industry have been transforming the sector over the past several decades.
However, investment in information technology in oil and gas is quite low
compared to exploration, development, and maintenance of assets. If IT
solutions for the oil and gas industry were to increase even a single-digit
percentage, the impact on efficiency and thus profits would be massive.
The best way the sector can take
its operations to the next level is to begin generating, storing and processing
data the same way it does its fuels. This requires the implementation of IoT in
each phase of production and logistics. As of today, only 2% of all energy data
is captured, most of which is done without automation. An increase in the
collection of data through IoT implementation will dramatically increase the
capabilities of downstream and upstream industries.
According to Teradata, the upstream
oil and gas industry loses around $8 billions dollars per year due to
non-productive time (NPT) caused by weak information management. According to
Accenture, there has been nearly a 20 percent increase in the number upstream
oil and gas companies investing in IoT since 2015. Improving the efficiency of
the upstream industry is increasingly more necessary as the locations of
resources becomes more complex. As more oil and gas is discovered in deep
waters of offshore or remote oil sands, distance and will demand an increased
interconnection to maintain high performance, supply, and profit margins.
Regarding increasing downstream
efficiencies, oil and gas companies can improve asset tracking my implementing
the use of sensors on inventory shipments. Given that the price of sensors
continues to fall, this simple implementation could increase awareness of
supplies and inventories at a small investment to oil and gas companies. This
would allow companies to monitor not only the location of their products but
also their conditions. Sensors can offer tracking of varying aspects of
logistics such as temperature changes, leaks, etc. that can affect customers’
shipments. A survey conducted by Intel found that IoT implementation within the
downstream oil and gas industry can allow companies to more efficiently rank
their wells by production efficiency, increasing asset portfolio management and
improving process flow. Total cost reductions thanks to IoT implementation are
projected to reach 30 percent, which could change the entire business structure
of the industry.
Interconnecting various aspects of
production through IoT will enable oil and gas companies to offer better, more
reliable services, and allow them to optimize their production and logistics
processes to reduce variable and fixed costs. This small investment should be a
no-brainer for sectors which spend trillions of dollars on exploration and
maintenance of equipment and assets. With the implementation of IoT, the
availability and reliability of these precious resources will continue to
climb, as will company and investor profits. For More technology experience visit Silicon Valley Center
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