International Projects
There is no need to explain the role of oil in the economy of Russia and the whole world.
Yet, the recovery of what we call black gold requires increasingly more sophisticated technologies because of the green agenda and fewer easily accessible reservoirs and deposits of an adequate quality level.
Universally, one of the main areas of research and development is transition towards eco-friendly technology. So the oil and gas sector is no exception. Different countries started launching additional funding programs for R&D towards the low-carbon energy in 2020. Instead, private enterprises began to reduce R&D costs, even though this was mainly due to lower income because of the crisis.
As IEA estimates, various governments will spend approximately $50bn to develop large-scale technologies for low-carbon power by 2030. Investments from Japan that might amount to almost $20bn are of particular interest.
With this in mind, technologies for resource maximisation and production, including hard-to-recover reserves, are becoming increasingly relevant. This is due to the gradual depletion of conventional reserves in connection with the steady demand for oil and petroleum products.
Digitalisation is another trend that is worth mentioning. The biggest Russian companies implement large-scale projects in this area and, in some cases, now have the preliminary results.
It would not be easy to list all the technologies in the oil industry, especially taking into account foreign practices. There are catalogues of competitive advantages that describe patents and case history. It is also true that not all inventions have patents, so many of them are still considered know-how.
Irrespective of the green agenda, the Oil Age continues. Companies both in Russia and abroad are in search of the most efficient and eco-friendly methods to produce black gold. This century has already pushed technology forward.