Technological frontier push

Saudi Aramco Senior Vice President of Industrial Relations Khalid Al-Falih has addressed Waseda University’s Global Information and Telecommunication Institute Symposium, where he emphasized Saudi Aramco’s vision for a future driven by research and development that pushes the limits of technology. To ensure that its technological edge remains sharp, Mr Al-Falih said, Saudi Aramco has launched an aggressive research and development vision that includes ambitious goals such as gigacell reservoir simulators, autonomous wells that “think” and drill themselves, and reservoir measurements generated by nanorobots. In the downstream arena, the company is studying the desulphurization of “whole” crude oil and refined products using biotechnology, and advanced fuel formulations, including on-board reforming of gasoline into hydrogen and carbon-emissions mitigation. “Together, those technologies will help us find and recover more oil, enhance fuel efficiency, and significantly improve environmental performance both locally and globally,” Al-Falih said. This vision for advanced technology, however, is not starting from scratch; Saudi Aramco’s operations are already characterized by widespread application of some of the most cutting-edge equipment and processes in the industry. These include four-dimensional seismic surveys, massively parallel-processing computers to simulate the company’s huge reservoirs, and GPS and VSAT systems linking its headquarters to remote operations. Al-Falih concluded his address with an exhortation to the energy industry and academia to keep a powerful vision before them – one of raised standards of living. “Because energy is indispensable to our way of life and our ability to improve living standards for the billions of men and women who still live in poverty,” he said, “the development of new cost-effective energy technologies is one of humanity’s most important agenda items as we look into the future.”
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