BP: Digital Oilfield Will Attract New Blood to Industry

Digital oilfield technologies will encourage the next generation of young professionals into the oil and gas industry, according to a poll conducted Wednesday at the SPE Intelligent Energy International 2012 exhibition in Utrecht. Sixty-three percent of participants said young professionals would be encouraged by the new technology, while 37 percent thought they would not.

The poll was conducted by BP on the second day of IE2012, which is expected to attract more than 2,000 business leaders and senior engineering professionals from across the world.

Under the theme empowered by real-time, BP is posing choices for the next phase in the development of the digital oilfield at IE2012. The company is drawing on its experience from the ongoing development of its Field of the Future program to discuss the choices, challenges and changes faced by the industry in progressing the application of "Intelligent Energy".

It is 10 years since the Field of the Future program was established, and in that time effective solutions have been deployed into eight of BP's operating regions: Alaska, Angola, Azerbaijan, the Gulf of Mexico, Indonesia, the North Sea (UK and Norway), Oman and Trinidad.

Steve Roberts, Vice President of the Field of the Future technology flagship, BP, said, "We are all aware of the skills shortage which faces our industry and the need to attract the engineers of tomorrow. We have to ask ourselves what these people want to achieve, what working practices would encourage and inspire them and what we must do to secure their commitment."

"The fact that delegates at IE2012 believe the next generation of professionals will find digital oilfield technologies to be a significant attraction is a real endorsement of the work being done to sustain the lifeblood of our industry. It gives us encouragement that we are on the right track."

BP is conducting three delegate polls this week, one for each full day of IE2012. Delegates are also being asked to vote on whether digital oilfield concepts will deliver higher levels of automation and integration, leading to greater value, and if resistance to new ways of working is the biggest challenge to realizing the full potential of the digital oilfield. To participate in the polls, visit BP at stand B50.