The Impact Of The Energy Transition On The Oil & Gas Industry

This lively discussion covered a range of topics from investor perspectives and government policies to unprecedented competition and innovation in the oil and gas industry.

The oil and gas industry is responsible for between a quarter and a third of methane released on earth. Panelists discussed the need to use evolving technologies in the industry for effective methane reduction.

Demand trends are still up, and investment decisions need to be driven by long-term demand. Oil and gas is not going anywhere in the foreseeable future, so we have to focus on making the industry cleaner. The amount of methane released is one of the biggest determinants of how clean oil and gas is. Many majors and nationals have committed to reducing methane emissions, and being more transparent about measurement and managing emissions.

Many of the trends in technological innovation that are driving energy transition in the oil and gas industry were identified and discussed:

Carbon capture, utilization, and storage
Hydrogen—use of low-carbon sources will have a significant impact. The oil and gas sector has a major role to help get over the cost hurdle; will have huge roll-out potential in broader industrial applications.
Energy efficiency—we waste about two thirds of high-value energy, wasting capital and creating huge amounts of waste.
Demand-side efficiency—will generate enormous savings down the line.
Many answers were advanced in answer to the question “what is the next big leap in progress?”
Focus on efficiency and doing more with upstream technology
Converting downstream demand to cleaner energy sources—from wood and coal to gas and renewables
Government-driven initiatives are responsible for 70% of energy transition programs and play a very important role in energy transition and climate change policies and programs. There is no substitute for regulatory framework.
Private companies are responsible for delivering the technologies that will allow government regulations to be met. The changes needed are huge and complex; we have to work together because no one company is able to meet the requirements.
All of the innovations have to be managed economically and efficiently, or they can’t be widely adopted.
The oil and gas industry has the opportunity to provide a leadership role as technology innovations are rolled out to other industries.