Page 62 - Vol 33 Issue 34 2021

Trends Transforming the Oil and Gas Industry Outlook in 2021
oil Outlook

Trends Transforming

the Oil and Gas Industry

Outlook in 2021

By Team Linchpin
he petroleum industry and the oil and gas industry are undergoing a significant shift, with this being driven
Tby a few trends. While much of this has been through the increased implementation of technology, there
have been several other factors at play.

From sustainability efforts to legal challenges so that they’re better able to meet needs. This
Wearables
focused on certain practices, oil and gas has been beneficial in allowing firms to increase 4
companies have had to weather several factors their capacity while delivering products at a faster
and deal with many challenges. Though some timeframe.
have been relatively small in the past few months Employee health and safety is often one of
or years, they look poised to become larger in the the largest concerns for any company in the
coming years. Increased petroleum industry. While standards have
2 Sustainability remained high for decades, there have been
several improvements in how to meet and
While many consumers believe that sustainability exceed this, with wearables beginning to make
10 Key is solely the area of wind and solar energy, an impact on this.
this isn’t the case, as the oil and gas industry has
This has included the implementation of
Petroleum Trends been focusing more and more on sustainability in augmented reality and virtual reality devices, such
the past few years.
as headsets, which allow for the inspection of
Much of this has been seen in reducing their dangerous areas without the need for a physical
As such, companies operating in the petroleum environmental impact. The majority of this has presence. As a result, workers will be able to
industry will need to adapt and position been driven by consumer expectations, resulting inspect an area through these smart headsets
themselves accordingly. There are a few areas in ecological causes becoming increasingly and determine whether it’s safe for work to begin.
where they should focus in particular. commonplace across the industry. air quality, employee vitals, and much more to
There is also a range of devices that monitor
There are a few ways that this has been done,
such as focusing on renewable, non-carbon ensure that workers remain physically safe while
Focus On
1 Infrastructure energy. on the job.
leum industry, Infrastructure has been some what
While being one of the larger parts of the petro-
Growth In
4D Seismic
underserved for quite some time. This has been 3 Natural Gas 5 Technology
changing in the past few years as more busi- Oil has gotten most of the attention in the energy Deep-sea exploration has often been one of
nesses place more investment into their supply industry, with much of the rest going to wind and the largest costs associated with the oil and gas
and logistics. solar power. This hasn’t meant that natural gas industry, which has led to various ways to bring
While this investment can be large, it can often had gone away, however. In contrast, there has this cost down. As a result, there have been
be vital for a variety of processes outside of the been somewhat of a resurgence in natural gas in several technologies developed to help with this.
extraction of oil and gas. Many of the investments recent years. Alongside the above-mentioned augmented
that have been seen haven’t solely been focused This is driven by the fact that it’s a low-carbon and virtual reality software has been 4D seismic
on expanded networks, although this does play alternative to oil, which means that it’s more technology. Petroleum geophysicists and
a large role. sustainable and environmentally friendly. geologists predominantly use this to map out
Instead, many companies have focused on Alongside this has been the United States having potential reserves for exploration. There are a
improving and repairing their existing networks greater access to natural gas fields. variety of benefits associated with this, with the

62 | AFRICAN POWER Mining & Oil Review Vol33 Issue 34 2021