AI-enabled digital ops step up offshore field’s oil production game by one-fourth of its previous level

UAE’s energy giant Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has harnessed the power of advanced digital solutions to raise the production bar at one of its oil fields off the coast of Abu Dhabi, UEA. Buoyed by this achievement, the company intends to continue leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced technologies to meet the growing global energy demand.

With digital tools enabling a 25% production capacity increase, ADNOC’s Satah Al Razboot (SARB) field, located 120 kilometers northwest of Abu Dhabi, has reached a total of 140,000 barrels per day (bpd), supporting the UAE energy heavyweight’s target to increase its production capacity to 5 million barrels of oil per day by 2027.

Thanks to the digital solutions implemented onsite at SARB, the field can be operated remotely from Zirku island, 20 km away, thus, remote monitoring, smart well operations, and production management technologies are integrated at the remote control center for optimized real-time decision-making. 

While this move has enabled accelerated growth in capacity with reduced costs and emissions, the field’s digitalization is expected to spur the deployment of additional AI solutions to enhance and optimize operations.

The firm used over 30 AI items across its full value chain to slash its emissions footprint and generate $500 million in value during 2023, with these AI applications curbing up to 1 million tons of CO2 emissions in 2022–2023, which is the equivalent of removing around 200,000 gasoline-powered cars from the road.

Abdulmunim Saif Al Kindy, ADNOC’s Upstream Executive Director, commented: “AI and digitalization are at the heart of ADNOC’s smart growth strategy to help responsibly meet the world’s growing energy demand.

“By deploying industry-leading technologies at SARB field, we have increased production capacity while enhancing the safety, sustainability and efficiency of our operations, strengthening ADNOC’s position as one of the world’s lowest-cost and least carbon intensive energy producers.” 

According to ADNOC, the technologies employed at the SARB field encompass tools developed by the Abu Dhabi-based AIQ, with its DrillRep and OptiDrill solutions processing data from rigs and wells, enhancing drilling efficiency and optimization with the necessary insights and actions to optimize the drilling process.

As the number of companies jumping on the AI bandwagon grows, the goal is to deliver greater value for the UAE and all the partners involved. ADNOC also employed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), known as drones, to achieve emission cuts from onshore and offshore operations.

A few weeks ago, Technip Energies finished the work related to the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) of the Umm Lulu Phase II full field development project in the Arabian Gulf, 40 km northwest of Abu Dhabi.

Recently, ADNOC secured a deal with Japan’s Osaka Gas for liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply mainly from its low-carbon Ruwais LNG project, which is under development.