Enable Access to Clean Cooking and Heating Solutions
Use Innovative Business Models and Create New Products and Services to Improve Energy Affordability and to Enable Access to Clean Cooking and Heating Solutions.
Providing access to energy and clean cooking and heating solutions to low income populations may not always be just about new and innovative large scale technological or infrastructure solutions, but about using a company's core competencies, eliminating waste, adapting the industry's traditional business model and designing products to meet the low income population needs in developed and developing economies.
Activities across the entire supply chain; upstream and downstream, can capture and use waste streams to provide energy to local communities, in the event the surrounding community does not have energy or is under-served. Access to energy also means giving economic access to services. Low income populations (living in both urban and rural areas) sometimes cannot afford the costs of energy consumption provided to their homes. Abating the cost of bills through creative financing is a way to help low income customers pay their consumption and at the same time guarantee them an effective service.
Reduce the Flaring of Gas
Considerable energy waste occurs in the operations of oil and gas companies. One of these sources is gas flaring associated with the production of oil.
Flaring of this gas wastes a valuable clean energy resource that can be used to reduce inefficiencies and increase energy access in many developing countries where much of the oil is produced. Technologies exist to capture the flared gas, but gas utilization needs to be improved, as does the distribution infrastructure so that producers can unlock the value of currently wasted natural gas.
Oil and gas companies should focus on four areas of gas flaring reduction to improve energy efficiency, expand access to energy, and contribute to climate change mitigation:
- Commercialization of associated gas requires infrastructure, pipeline networks, liquefaction facilities, and small-scale gas-to-liquid technologies for economically viable utilization on-site, and for distribution to local markets.
- Working with governments to put effective regulations in place for associated gas, and to create incentives such as Carbon Finance Funds or Clean Development Mechanisms.
- Implementation of a global flaring and venting reduction standard.
- Capacity building to obtain carbon credits for flaring and venting reduction projects.
Become More Energy Efficient
Upstream
Utilizing more efficient gas turbines on platforms could significantly improve efficiencies in exploration and production operations. Using electricity from the land-based grid for offshore platforms rather than gas turbines could provide opportunity to utilize grid based renewable energy, reduce CO2 emissions, and improve energy efficiency.
Midstream / Transport
The oil and gas transportation system is a complex network of pipelines designed to transport petroleum products from producing. Key technologies for energy efficiency in midstream include controls, enterprise software, instrumentation, low-voltage products, high pressure pipelines, and efficient compressors, pumps, drives and motors. Software and analytics could also optimize downstream distribution logistics and reduce energy consumption.
Downstream Refining
Petroleum refining requires tremendous amounts of energy. For this reason, setting achievable targets for improving energy efficiency should be a top priority for most refinery managers.
The need to reduce operating costs intensifies as refining margins decrease. Any solution that improves the conservation, recovery and use of heat will increase the refinery's efficiency; techniques such as enhanced heat integration, increased automation, energy management systems, and the use of modern catalysts can improve the energy efficiency of a refinery.
End consumer
Oil and gas companies, similar to automobile companies, have the opportunity to engage with end consumers to educate them on what efficient operational practices they are implementing as a company and what steps the end consumer can take to be more sustainable and energy efficient. In addition, oil and gas companies can provide energy saving products to its consumers such as lubricants and gasoline with fuel additives.
Priority Actions for the Oil and Gas Industry
The following section provides detail on five priority actions the oil and gas industry can take to become more energy efficient, increase the use of renewable energy and advance their business opportunities in the sustainable energy market:
- Use more renewable energy sources and emphasize energy efficiency throughout the entire fuels supply chain.
- Reduce the flaring of gas from operations and identify opportunities to reuse captured gas on-site or provide energy to local communities.
- Invest in research and development and utilize core competencies to bridge the gap from fundamental research to commercialization of liquid renewable transportation fuels and renewable generation technologies.
- Promote international trade in sustainable energy products.
- Use innovative business models and create new products and services to improve energy affordability and to enable access to clean cooking and heating solutions.
Innovation in the Oil and Gas Industry
The oil and gas industry is committed to investing in new technologies to meet energy demand and the challenges of sustainability. The industry is investing heavily in the research and development of new technologies to improve efficiencies in operations. The industry is also at the forefront of creating the next-generation of advanced biofuels and large-scale offshore wind; developing and advancing renewable technologies from pilot project to scale. There are several innovation trends:
- The creation of the "new, fully optimized" digital oil field with more sophisticated information technology - using distributed sensors, high speed communication and data mining techniques to use real-time data to make better decisions and to get more barrels out of each asset.
- Energy efficient technologies to access and process hard to reach, lower quality, and new types of oil and gas.
- Development of alternative and advanced fuels and renewable energy generation technologies.
Sustainable Energy as a Value Driver for the Oil and Gas Industry
Oil and gas companies have significant opportunities to improve the efficiency of core operations through new process designs and processing techniques, driving business value through cost reductions based on sustainable energy initiatives. The global oil and gas industry has already made significant improvements in the efficiency of its energy use.
The oil and gas industry also has an important role to play in the global sustainable energy transformation, and these sustainable energy markets represent a new and expanding business opportunity for oil and gas companies to create new revenue streams. Oil and gas companies will be leaders in advanced biofuels development as a means of diversifying, and oil and gas companies are also entering non-transportation renewable markets such as wind and solar.
These actions not only provide for societal improvements, but they also help build brand awareness, strength, and equity. In addition, these are ways to spur and enter into local energy markets.
