Reimagining the oil and gas industry

By Jose Wilfredo Molina, president and founder of Nakasawa Resources

The world is changing quickly, with new technologies, social movements and public expectations all shaping and reshaping what companies need to be to survive in today’s world. This is no less true in the oil & gas sector, where pressures such as public opinion and concern for the environment are driving change as we work to ensure long-term business success.

Our industry is essential to the continued prosperity of our civilizations, as the majority of the world’s power still comes from oil and gas – and will continue to do so even in the future energy mix. But as part of protecting our sector and our planet, we must seek ways to mitigate our environmental impact. It is time to reimagine what our industry can be.

A Sustainable Oil & Gas Industry

The global sustainability conversation broadly centers on two themes: water and CO2, both of which are critical for environmental and human wellbeing in their own ways, and both of which the oil and gas sector can play an important role in addressing. 

Our industry uses water in a number of ways, including to drill and hydraulically fracture wells, refine and process oil and gas, and produce electricity in certain natural gas power plants. Water will continue to be very important to all these processes, but with new and emerging technologies, there are now ways to greatly reduce the amount used. Solutions such as closed-loop systems, for example, can help reduce the amount of water used and protect local water sources.

CO2, on the other hand, is perhaps the chemical compound most closely associated with climate change. The EIA found that roughly 60% of CO2 emissions in 2019 were attributed to oil industry activities (in the US) ranging from production to transportation to the refining process, presenting a clear opportunity for industry improvement and change in an area that will make a major difference to communities – and to the planet. 

The tools are available, but can the industry change to adapt to the times?

Becoming the Solution

Personally, I believe the answer to this question is a resounding “yes.”  Today, there is cutting-edge technology available that can help do things like reduce emissions and water usage throughout the oil and gas industry, greatly improving its sustainability. 

This technology (as well as its continued advances) will continue to be vital, as global energy demand is expected to grow approximately 30% from 2015 to 2035. This is partly due to the expected increase in the population, which is expected to reach nearly 10 billion by 2060. Access to energy will be an absolute must, and while the renewable energy industry is expanding, its persistent challenges in terms of energy storage mean that oil and gas will continue to be an important component of the energy mix – even in 2050. At that time, renewable sources of energy are expected to account for 28% of the energy mix, but oil and other liquids (27%) and natural gas (22%) will still be extremely important energy sources. 

The oil and gas industry will remain an important sector in our global society, but we must reinvent ourselves, using more efficient, sustainable technologies as we continue supplying the world’s energy. There are multiple levels to this necessary effort, running from the purely technological (creating and implementing increasingly sustainable oil extraction solutions) to the political (developing measures that serve governments, companies, societies and the planet alike) to the social (building community support for oil and gas projects). All this must be done with an eye to maintaining a healthy balance of supply and demand, while also protecting each nation’s ecosystems and communities.

These are broad efforts with many possible intersecting paths to success. For example, a company could act ahead of shifting legislation to begin using extraction solutions that use significantly less water and run for much shorter periods of time to minimize their environmental impact, then publicize this change in the communities it will affect most. This kind of initiative is just one example of what may come to be expected in the future.

These are important steps as we march toward an ever-more environmentally conscious future. Our sector will continue to be necessary, but even so, we must not fear change. We must embrace the need to continue evolving and improving, reimagining what our businesses can be today so that we can best continue serving the world’s energy needs in tomorrow’s reality. 

Jose Wilfredo Molina can be contacted here: jwmolina@nakasawaresources.com

DISCLAIMER: This content is the sole responsibility of the author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of BNamericas. We invite those interested in participating as a guest columnist to submit an article for possible inclusion. To do this, contact the editor at electric@bnamericas.com