Cost:
The price of sensors, data-storage units and processors have dropped dramatically in recent years.
Digital Transformation
Digital technologies are transforming our lives in ways that were unimaginable even a decade ago. Digitalisation is also transforming the energy industry, by improving efficiency and safety, and by facilitating the use of renewable energy.
We are at a tipping point of exponential technological advancement. In the coming years, the internet of things will consist of a trillion sensors, all generating and sharing data. Machine learning and artificial intelligence are no longer science fiction; they are already automating and optimising operations. Digital technologies are driving cost efficiency, providing new revenue opportunities and changing business models. They have the potential to redefine the oil and gas industry.
But digitalisation is about more than technology. It is also a cultural change, about people and agile ways of working. We employ leading data scientists who unlock value from the data Shell has access to. They work in teams with other experts across our businesses to combine commercial acumen with technical and data expertise. They develop practical solutions, allowing us to learn and improve all the time.
How will digitalisation change the energy industry
Read the transcript
Title: How will digitalisation change the energy industry?
Duration: 01:48 minutes
Description:
From blockchain to artificial intelligence, how can digitalisation change the energy industry? Hear from Shell's Project & Technology Director Harry Brekelmans and experts from Microsoft, Salesforce and techUK.
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[voice of Harry Brekelmans]
Digitalisation is going to help us accelerate towards finding solutions that we need,
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Medium shot of Harry Brekelmans talking to camera.
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Harry Brekelmans
Shell Projects & Technology Director
[Harry Brekelmans]
to deal with the questions that are in front of us in the energy system, which is we have to meet more demands but, at the same time, we have to make for a lower-carbon energy system.
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Raghu Ramakrishan
Microsoft CTO for Data
The energy industry is going through a secular expansion,
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[Voice of Raghu Ramakrishan]
when you have to process large amounts of information in near real-time.
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Digitalisation, essentially, is your opportunity to react and make decisions quickly.
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Jonathan Miranda
Salesforce Emerging Strategy Principal
[Jonathan Miranda]
In this world as a futurist, we consider two to five years the future. Whereas the energy industry has been working in 20, 30 years.
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Various workers analysing data on screens.
[voice of Jonathan Miranda]
In this new field, blockchain is probably one of the most important technologies to pay attention to. It is an incredibly powerful tool that gives you transparency of data across partners,
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across eco-systems, across all the B2B companies you work with, across the customers and, if you want to have a solid data strategy you need a way to share information that is trusted.
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[Voice of Jaqueline de Rojas CBE]
Technology is moving so fast, we have to make sure we are on point.
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Jaqueline de Rojas CBE
techUK President
Always evolving and always learning.
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Workers pointing at screens and talking.
[Jaqueline de Rojas CBE]
It's really exciting to see how tech can enable big shifts for the consumption of energy and climate change.
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Worker analysing data on screen.
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Medium shot of Daniel Jeavons talking to camera.
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Daniel Jeavons
Shell Data Science General Manager
[Daniel Jeavons]
The energy industry is going through a really transformational period.
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[Voice of Daniel Jeavons]
To be able to process data quickly and provide real-time insight to the people that need it, is something we've always struggled with.
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The new generation of algorithms that have been developed as part of artificial intelligence,
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Is providing the ability to do just that.
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Medium shot of Harry Brekelmans talking to camera.
[Harry Brekelmans]
If you think about the efficiencies we can achieve,
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[voice of Harry Brekelmans]
if you think about the added value you can create by new products and new customers,
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Medium shot of Harry Brekelmans talking to camera.
[Henry Brekelmans]
It’s billions and billions of dollars
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shell.com/innovation
© Shell International Limited 2019
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#makethefuture
© Shell International Limited 2019
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Shell tune piano version
What we see happening in the world today is an explosion of data leading to a radical transformation in information technology. According to the IDC there are 33 Zettabytes of data in the world, this is projected to grow to 175 Zettabytes by 2025. 90% of that data was created in the last 2 years. 80% of it will be unstructured by 2025. And this is transforming how we do our work. These vast data volumes make information more accessible and make algorithms much smarter.
These days our data is no longer about structured tables - it comes from drones, from blockchains, from IoT devices, from documents and of course from videos. In Shell, big data is not new – our robotic subsea inspection videos exceed 7TB, our land seismic surveys are up to 20 petabytes and our marine surveys range from 10-30 TB. To give you an idea of the scale here, a terabyte is about 500 hours of video. Each of our physical assets – from refineries to wind turbines - generate hundreds of thousands of measurements per minute.
There is now an expectation that this data can be processed in near real-time using cloud technologies – and we’ve been growing our capabilities rapidly in this domain. It is the companies who can harness these new data sources using machine learning technology and provide business insights who will be the ones that really make an impact. The ultimate benefit of digital technologies is how they influence decision making, driving business value. For Shell, this becomes critical – the world needs more and cleaner energy solutions.
DIGITALISATION IS TRANSFORMING THE ENERGY VALUE CHAIN
Digitalisation is transforming the Energy value chain
What are the fundamental changes enabling digital transformation?
There are some fundamental changes in science and technology enabling this transformation. Although Digitalisation is not new, the technology has become cheaper and faster and the amount of data and connectivity is increasing exponentially, which makes the application of digital technologies ready to deliver at an affordable cost.
FIND OUT MORE
Trust in the digital age
At the Web Summit technology conference in Lisbon, Portugal, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden speaks on the need to gain public trust and the importance of transparency and ethical behaviour.
Three ways to thrive through the digital and energy transitions
Yuri Sebregts, Shell Chief Technology Officer, discusses three ways Shell is approaching the challenges and opportunities of the double transformation the energy industry is going through: digitalisation and the energy transition. This blogpost summarises a discussion with Tim Ensor, Director of Artificial Intelligence at Cambridge Consultants. This was Shell’s contribution to the 2020 edition of the AI Summit at the London Tech Week (scroll down to the bottom of the page for the full recording).
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