Christopher Hudson, President, dmg events
As countries with ambitious climate targets embrace transition fuels in the path to net zero, and as Europe strives to work towards energy security in a geopolitically fraught climate, the demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) has skyrocketed. As a consequence, this sought-after source of energy has reached record prices, forcing producers and suppliers to come up with ingenious ways to meet the insatiable appetite for the fuel. Enter: the digital revolution.
Digitalisation in the oil and gas space involves the adoption of technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing, cybersecurity, the Internet of things (IoT), and robotics. Combining cutting-edge analytics capacity with a comprehensive understanding of the operational process, these technologies can deliver actionable insights to extend the life of an existing gas asset, allowing companies to reduce capital and operating expenditures.
Moreover, the digitalisation of workflows can go a long way in creating efficient mechanisms of decentralised decision making, allowing producers to identify, anticipate, and mitigate supply chain issues that might otherwise be neglected. In this way, minimising equipment downtime while enhancing operational performance can help suppliers increase revenue and tap into the ever-increasing demand for LNG.
Rapid digitalisation, however, is not without its limits. Critics argue that overarching digitalisation efforts are difficult to implement at a time of peak production, especially if undisrupted gas supply is crucial to the energy security of entire continents. Moreover, if the process is adopted too hastily, it could make entire energy production networks vulnerable to geopolitical aggressors with the means and motives to exploit digital pain points. Furthermore, different sectors of the LNG value chain, although intimately interconnected, and have a wide range of operational actors, that vary significantly in their technical know-how and financial means, making it even more difficult to coordinate a digital transition in the industry as a whole.
As the industry balances the strategic imperative of digital transformation with short-term pressures on operational stability, Gastech 2022 will bring together leaders from across the LNG and wider gas value chains to discuss the role emerging technologies are playing in the sector’s present and future. How to optimise the supply and production of LNG to best balance the competing needs for energy security and a green energy transition will be at the very heart of those conversations.
We have a strategic leadership panel examining this very topic on Day 1 of Gastech 2022, with many more technical discussions across the conference, and exhibitors displaying their latest technologies throughout. Join us on September 5th-8th in Milan, Italy.
To find out more about the conference, visit our website at: www.gastechevent.com
#Gastech, Fiera Milano, Italy 5-8 September 2022
