‘Technology Adoption Will Check Risks in Oil Industry’

The Executive Operations Director at Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Mr. Effiong Okon, has said right adoption of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), big data and mobile technology will drive planning, forecast and help to address risks in the Nigerian oil industry.

The Seplat EOD said this at the 43rd Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition held in Lagos recently, with the theme: Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and Mobile Technology: Changing the Future of the Energy Industry.

While delivering a presentation titled: “Transforming Big Data and Technology to Business Value: Challenges and Strategic Options,” during a panel session, Okon said leveraging Cloud computing and big data, for instance, promotes accurate forecast of oil production for planning, which in turn drives operational excellence (production optimisation and asset performance).

The use of predictive and data-driven maintenance for production and cost efficiency, according to him, has helped to reduce Mean Time To Repair (MTTR), and increase Mean Time Before Failure (MTBF) in the industry.

For drilling, operators can get predictive analysis through smart drilling, guarantee early identification of drilling anomalies, hazards to well control problems; develop more Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) techniques; and real time data through Logging While Drilling (LWD) and Measurement While Drilling (MWD), the Seplat executive noted.