The Opportunities of Digitalization in the Oil and Gas Industry

A hot topic for the oil and gas industry for quite some time now has been the recurring employment problems. One of the top barriers to growth in this industry has been identified as a shortage of skills. This problem can now be seen taking over the challenges of the rising costs of energy.

The International Energy Forum (IEF) has been collaborating with The Boston Consulting Group at the 16^th Forum which was held in India in 2018. Here, they had described how an acute labor crisis is on the rise and the shortage of talent in the industry is to blame. What’s more? At least 50 percent of the workforce in the industry is set to retire in just 5 years. It’s quite understandable though because the younger generation perceives the oil and gas industry as redundant and old-fashioned.

Digitalization May Provide the Solution

While experts see a jobless future as a consequence of digitalization, the reality will be quite the opposite. Due to these technological developments, a range of novel skills will be required in the near future – which will create new opportunities accordingly.

Currently, the advances in robotics and machine learning can be seen pushing the rates of unemployment to historic lows. In the future, however, digital technologies’ applications in the oil and gas industry will be able to cast modern images that are more appealing to young generations. Over the past few years, a number of technologies have been introduced in the oil and gas industry that aim to streamline several operations, ranging from oil extraction to CRM.

Think about what technologies will be required to perform drilling in remote areas that are way below the sea bed. Other than this, imagine how fast and gargantuan processing speeds of computers will have to be to digest, analyze, and interpret the seismic and geological data. In order to perform these activities, the most cutting edge technologies will be required – along with the most talented operators.

New Technologies Will Require New Skill Sets

The mere size of the oil and gas industry will make for a giant stand-alone digital industry. This industry will need to work closely with the most established providers of technology – such as Google. If this were to materialize, the oil and gas industry will become an attractive opportunity for all the young graduates all over the world.

As a result, digital technologies’ applications in the oil and gas industry will have completely modified the required skillsets for specific tasks. In the digitalized industry, the likes of Big Data and Machine Learning will collect and access massive amounts of data. This data will then be reviewed by individuals with advanced analytical skills and decisions will be taken accordingly. Such decisions are likely to be more effective and efficient!

Decades of experience will, therefore, have been made irrelevant. Digitalization will be the new frontier for the oil and gas industry. As such, the oil and gas sector will require more and more individuals with technical skills, leading to a surge in employment opportunities for the youth.