Robots Will Be Oil and Gas Industry Growth Engine

Robots will be the oil and gas industry’s growth engine, according to data and analytics company GlobalData.

“The volume of robotics use cases in the oil and gas industry is expected to grow rapidly, in tow with digitalization,” Anson Fernandes, an oil and gas analyst at GlobalData, said in a statement sent to Rigzone.

“Industrial robots with analytical support from digital technologies is expected to become the mainstay across the oil and gas industry, especially in the upstream sector, where personnel safety and operational security concerns are heightened,” Fernandes added.

In the statement, Fernandes noted that robotics is a fast-growing industry, adding that, according to GlobalData forecasts, it was worth $52.9 billion in 2021 and will reach $568 billion by 2030.

“The oil and gas sector will greatly benefit from emerging use cases,” Fernandes said in the statement.  

According to a recent GlobalData report, leading robotics adopters in the oil and gas industry include BP, Chevron, China Petrochemical Corp (Sinopec) and Equinor. Some of the leading robotics vendors in the oil and gas sector include Cognex, Cyberdyne, Estun Automation and FANUC, the report highlighted.

In a report sent to Rigzone early last year identifying themes that were “set to have the most influence” on the oil and gas sector in 2021, GlobalData highlighted “tech themes such as robotics, industrial internet, artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, and cybersecurity”.

In October 2021, Nabors Industries Ltd. announced that the world’s first fully automated land drilling rig had reached total depth on its first well, which was for ExxonMobil in the Permian basin. In June 2021, Heriot-Watt University announced that a robot made famous by dancing on YouTube was set to help save lives and cut carbon dioxide emissions by supporting hazardous environment research at the National Robotarium.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com