Digitalisation and technological innovation offer the pathway to the future of energy supplies and achieving carbon net zero. So, when we talk about digitalisation in our industry, we mean:
Pumps, turbines, generators run our plants. We monitor them to prevent malfunction. But machines can fail. Data scientist Eva Andritsopoulou and her team use machine learning to predict malfunctions before they occur. This is artificial intelligence at scale, with direct impact on operations and safety.
A subsea drone working for Equinor recently set the world record for the longest period ever for an operational remotely controlled vessel underwater, spending 165 days at a depth of 330 metres.
The Saipem Hydrone-R drone has been working at the Njord field in the Norwegian Sea, performing regular drill support, production support activities and some autonomous operations at Njord field, giving important information about potential leaks or hazards.
Equinor is robot-ready — and they are already in daily use in many areas of our business.
Years of investment in IT infrastructure, advanced data analytics, machine learning and AI, software development and third-party solutions, a cloud first strategy, all based on the recognition that data and connectivity will transform Equinor, our industry and society. We have the technical core to transform through robotics.
We use drones and robots to do more of the dangerous, dirty, distant and the dull jobs for us, leaving our employees to focus even more time on innovative tasks and solutions.
From inspection of chemical tanks to subsea pipelines, and maintenance work such as sand blasting and painting, robots and drones are transforming the way we work. They extend our reach and capability in environmental monitoring and are also being tested for logistical flights offshore.
Wouldn’t it be great if Google Street View and Google Maps could show where to go in the vast jungle of pipes and valves in a plant? Our specialists agreed, and developed Echo, a “street view” and visualisation tool for digital twins. The operators have all they need on a tablet, and can find equipment, simulate modifications, plan maintenance and collaborate in real-time. Or just find their way back to the office.
If a part breaks down and impacts operations, it quickly gets very expensive. But so is having duplications of every possible part that can break. The solution is a digital inventory and 3D printing. Additive manufacturing can save money, the production can be done closer to where the part is needed and the process is often less CO2 intensive than traditional manufacturing. Coupled with a digital inventory, we can produce parts on demand, close to where the need is. And in the not-to-distant future, drones will fly the part from the production site to where it is needed.
We will buy software solutions and applications if they are available, and if not, we can develop them ourselves. Like “Automated drilling control”, a cruise control for drilling, developed by a supplier in cooperation with Equinor’s engineers. With ADC we can avoid incidents, drill faster, take better decisions, reduce cost and improve safety in our operations. And that is no small matter when we drill 100 to 150 wells on the Norwegian continental shelf every year.
In Equinor we use data in new ways to find oil, produce it more efficiently and with lower CO2 emissions. From the wells at the enormous Johan Sverdrup field, data flows up from the ground faster than the oil does. Many times faster. In fact, 10,000 Netflix movies-a-second fast. To keep track, our engineers and subsurface specialists have turned to data science. They can livestream vast amounts of data from 3,000 meters underground, and are developing machine learning algorithms to make it easier for the engineers to view the right “movie” to optimise the operation.
Data sharing
Did you know that data sets from our Northern Lights, Volve and Hywind Scotland assets are open and available to researchers and students?
If you didn’t — here’s why we’re sharing them, what they contain, how to access them, and what it’s been used for so far. Data is the new oil, and we’re sharing a lot of it!
By sharing data, we can foster new ideas to solve complex energy problems.
Make data available anytime, anywhere
Enabling our employees to make better decisions, faster through accessible data and insights
Developing digital competence to become an industry leader
Digitalisation is as much about the mindset and the culture, as it is about tools and technology
Predicting and preventing safety and security incidents
By gathering and visualizing relevant data, we provide all the information needed to keep our people and operations safe
Robots will make our work easier
By reducing everyday repetitive tasks and human exposure. Future energy production will be lighter, more subsea and remotely controlled
