Houston, March 13 (Reuters) - Devon Energy corrected data to show a 15% improvement in drilling efficiency, not a 25% increase in the productive life of its oil and gas wells. The information was clarified during the CERAWeek conference in Houston.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing oil and gas drilling, leading companies to reconsider previously deemed challenging or costly sites, executives revealed at the conference.
AI took the spotlight at the world's largest energy event where oil producers explored strategies to maintain profitability amidst falling oil prices and concerns about potential impacts from U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs.
BP highlighted its use of AI to enhance drilling precision and anticipate well issues before they occur, as outlined by Ann Davies, BP's senior vice president of wells.
The company's increased efficiency prompted a higher annual investment in oil and gas production to boost investor confidence.
Devon Energy's Chief Technology Officer, Trey Lowe, cited AI's role in enabling drilling in previously unviable locations by leveraging data to avoid obstacles like geological faults.
Chevron deployed AI-powered drones to oversee shale operations, identifying and notifying workers of issues like emissions leaks, resulting in reduced downtime for maintenance and repairs.
Russell Robinson, Chevron's deputy program manager, mentioned that drones streamlined routine inspections, allowing resources to focus on uninterrupted production.
Devon Energy reported a 15% improvement in drilling efficiency with machine learning models monitoring rigs nationwide.
BP expedited offshore drilling by evaluating seismic data in the Gulf of Mexico within 8-12 weeks using AI, a significant reduction from the previous 6-12 month timeframe.
Chicheng Xu, founder of OpenPetro AI, highlighted the sector's transformation due to recent AI advancements, such as generating complex visualizations efficiently to aid decision-making.
Xu stressed the imperative for companies to adopt AI technology to remain competitive in the industry, which aligns with statements from Devon's Lowe.