The foreseen digital transformation in oil and gas industry has been expected for a while, and COVID-19 has accelerated the process. In an industry where everyday choices cost millions of dollars, every effort put into each project is decisive. Those projects will have an impact on whether your company will succeed today in order to lead the industry tomorrow. At present, decreasing stress on stock prices is a significant issue, and a post-COVID-19 drop in demand has made the condition graver. To be thriving despite these current market circumstances, oil and gas companies recognize digital technology’s necessity.
As many wonder what is the future of oil and gas industry, companies must prepare to embrace the quick digital transformation in oil and gas in order to stay afloat in the coming years. Management teams need to optimize their resources and unbind new approaches to add value. In fact, forward-thinking enterprises are already exploring technology levers to withstand the crisis and place them in thriving conditions when the times become favorable. Recently, Mike Orr, President of Digital Oil and Gas Solutions, stated that to stay competitive despite any headwinds, oil and gas companies need to demonstrate agility and tech-savviness while adjusting to the next normal.
With more than two decades of experience, allow us to give you some advice on how to drive the future of oil and gas industry today.
Transforming operations by doing more with less
The future of oil and gas industry presents its challenges; companies are seeing digital technology as an efficient driver of productivity in operations. By transforming how they operate and genuinely doing more with less, digital transformation has become vital for the industry. The growing social and economic pressure on oil and gas companies demands solutions for the coming years.
In reality, without them, the regular functioning of economies is unlikely, but with their business-as-usual practice, future generations’ safety is at risk. Consequently, in the context of environmental importance and rising energy demand, the alteration of oil and gas companies to sustainable energy companies is also imminent. It is evident that the current environment makes investments in technology more urgent than ever.
The impact and benefit technologies bring to the industry will help achieve rapid transformation. Digital tools do more than facilitate communication and collaboration. They enable engineers and operators to design and control operations remotely, support operational integrity and process safety, and automate manual tasks and streamline processes.
Therefore, robust digital determination makes it possible for businesses to consider different expense compositions, eliminating legacy computing systems, reducing corporate expenses, and more. The adoption of new tools will undoubtedly require time and training, and the workforce will likely need to be reskilled. But these concerns are solvable. Overall, humans and machines need to learn to work together in order to survive and succeed in such uncertain times.
Quick and effective digitalization
Usually, the most significant impediment to executing a complete upstream digital strategy is deciding where to begin. Although 80 percent of industry leaders are investing at least a moderate amount in digital technology today, taking quick and effective action can make a difference. As corporations continue to reach maximum value while expanding their infrastructure, take into consideration these decisive elements to accomplish rapid and accurate digital adoption:
1. Build trust
One of the most challenging digital adoption components is developing a high degree of confidence in the workforce. Engineers must feel assured and convinced they can trust digital sensors and automated platforms. They should be able to believe what the dashboard is showing and trust the data. Digital tools must work correctly from day one to provide confidence to those responsible for delivering results. Ensure ways to create the necessary trust among those you lead.
2. Communication and education
It is vital to be clear about delivering results and execute a collective effort to share tutoring from implementation across the company. The experience of using new tools could be shared to help others learn as they go through their own process. Communication and education about the use and benefit of technology must be implemented by any organization that genuinely understands the consequence of digital transformation.
3. Ensure value
Meticulous processes will be needed to guarantee new tools deliver real value. Employees will adopt new technology if it works precisely; this will enhance their capacity to do their duties and feel involved in its development. Organizations must adapt to technology to reach market expectations while sustaining value from investments and driving energy within value chain integration.
In fact, attempts to decarbonize the market are not only one of the top oil and gas industry trends; it will add to ensuring value. Companies must reinvent and optimize core workflows end to end to unfasten the full value from digital initiatives. According to a recent survey, there’s a strong association between digital maturity and value production.
4. Transition
Implement a digital foundation and tools that help people transition promptly and efficiently. Usability is essential, and technology attached to existing user experiences is always simpler to execute. Employees must be able to keep pace with the prevailing environment. A quick and effective shift will only occur if the workforce trusts, manages, and knows the real value digitalization can bring to stay afloat and thrive.
Data and its powerful impact on the future of oil and gas industry
Companies generate tremendous amounts of data, and most of them are creating and leveraging data in isolation. As a result, employees spend much time finding and validating data manually, potentially missing out on critical insights. Operations in gas and oil are highly complicated, anticipating that even trivial errors and inefficiencies can cost millions of dollars and produce long delays.
Combining applications and building a centralized data stream could have an enormous impact across the industry. Impressively, an estimate shows that more than $145 million annually can be likely unlocked by blending a standard data model and processes across the value chain. Therefore, it is not surprising that accessibility to big data is the principal trend in the industry right now; data and analytics are crucial to driving efficiency. However, without skillful and qualified workforces to operate around a standard data model, oil and gas companies will remain leaving money on the table.
Oil and gas industry trends
Ordinarily, the best leaders are the ones who accomplish the most remarkable transformations in trying times. The right strategies will embrace oil and gas industry trends to enable an agile digital transformation in such complex circumstances. Being conscious of top trends will facilitate prioritizing operations as business executives will better future-proof their enterprises. Take a look at some of the leading oil and gas industry trends to gain a strong competitive edge, optimize operating costs, and contribute to a healthier future.
