PANEL DISCUSSION: From the left: Peter Jenkins, CEO 4Subsea, Jan Tore Linstad, Sales Director offshore at Kongsberg Maritime, Raphael Naghirniac, Innovation, Technology and Business manager at Aker Solutions, Anderson Lima, Head of Digital Innovation at Equinor and Augusto Borella, Digitalization Manager of Petrobras.
Digital solutions can make the oil and gas industry future-fit and more sustainable.
A hot topic like digitalization did also earn a place on the agenda of Team Norway events during Rio Oil & Gas 2018.
The seminar was organized by GCE Subsea, Innovation Norway, The Consulate General and NORWEP, and took place on September 26, 2018, Day 3 of Latin America´s biggest oil and gas event.
Norway´s Deputy Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Mrs. Ingvil Smines Tybring-Gjedde held the keynote at the seminar,
«Norway is a world leader working with digital solutions, and we have a lot to gain from digitalization, an important tool in making sustainable use of ocean-based resources. The industry must be part of the effort to develop new technologies, part of the solution to the global challenges we are facing, and we have to make solutions available on the global market. Green solutions are simply good business. The energy and maritime sectors continue to be the engine for green and blue growth, and digitalization is one of the many tools to accomplish exactly that», Deputy Minister Tybring-Gjedde said.
In her opening statement to the event, Consul General Sissel Hodne Steen called digitalization a new frontier. «Both Norway and Brazil are pioneers on the energy, oil and gas sector, and digital transformation is a new frontier for us to conquer together».
Future fit
Mr. Augusto Borella, Petrobras´Executive Manager of digital transformation was the first speaker to share the industry´s perspective on the topic. In October, Petrobras will have a dedicated team in place to lead the digital transformation of the company, and digitalization has been identified as a key point in the business strategy.
Anderson Lima and Augusto Borella
«Given our unique technical capabilities, I am confident that we can do it, bringing a digital mindset to the company, treating data as an asset, and reaching knowledge that can be applied, to guarantee a result that will improve safety, productivity and compliance. Our vision is to transform how we generate value for our stakeholders. The digital transformation will affect business models and change the business culture. Our challenge is to discover now what will matter tomorrow and transform our industry into a future that is unfolding today», Mr Borella said.
According to Anderson Lima, Manager for digitalization and innovation in Equinor, digiltalization is a key enabler to fulfill the Equinor strategy of safe, low carbon and high value operations. Recently, Equinor inaugurated the first remote operations center in Bergen, with five platforms connected. The company has six concrete, ongoing digitalization projects and is also piloting new digital solutions.
Director of Innovation Norway in Brazil, Stein Gunnar Bondevik.
«Equinor sees data as an asset, and our operations produce a huge amount of data. We estimate that digitalization will add value of about USD 2 billion from producing fields, a reduction in drilling cost of around 15 percent and added value of around USD 500 million as a result of integrated remote operations US onshore. Digitalization will make us future fit. Digitalization is also about the mindset and culture in the company and about our ability to change. But data as a resource needs to be managed in a responsible way, with a purpose. In a fast pace era, where all of us are in a state of constant transformation, we need digitalization to stay ahead», Mr. Lima said.
DNV GL regional manager Jorge Ortiz presented the digital solutions that his company has already developed.
«Data is becoming the new raw material of business, and today, everyone wants to become digital. But we need to convert data into insights to improve business, improve risk management and avoid problems. It is a process where we go from software products and platforms to digital ecosystems, depending on asset type. The solutions are here, but this is a journey», Mr Ortiz (in the photo to the left) said.
CEO Peter Jenkins called his company 4Subsea the digital guinea pig in the room, in his presentation. «We love technology and love developing leading-edge technology empowering engineers everywhere to share insight. We focus our services on wells and flexible risers, and 4Subsea sees a huge potential as digitalization will help us move from a reactive to a proactive approach when it comes to operations, as well as reducing costs», Mr. Jenkins said.
On the same path
Jan Tore Linstad and Raphael Naghirniac
The second part of the event was organized as a panel debate and the panelists discussed how the industry views, plans and deals with current drastic changes in the industry, driven by the digital transformation.
The invited panelists included Peter Jenkins of 4Subsea, Raphael Naghirniac, Innovation, Technology and Business manager at Aker Solutions, Augusto Borella, Digitalization Manager of Petrobras, Anderson Lima, Head of Digital Innovation at Equinor and Jan Tore Linstad, Sales Director offshore at Kongsberg Maritime.
Mr. Naghirniac shared insights on how Aker Solutions uses digital solutions to improve efficiency and sustainability, both environmentally and economically.
According to Jan Tore Linstad, Kongsberg Maritime has been using digital solutions for more than 30 years, collecting data and making intelligent use of the data. «I am happy to see the enthusiasm in the industry», he said.
Norwep regional director Gunn Vik.
The panel also identified cross discipline collaboration, data sharing and access as a challenges going forward. NORWEP regional director Gunn Vik was moderating the panel.
«Digitalization is probably one of the most important steps to improve the oil and gas business, in all phases of the value chain, and time is of the essence», she concluded.
By Runa Hestmann, NBCC journalist
(runa.tierno@nbcc.com.br)
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