New Energy World™
New Energy World™ embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low-carbon technologies.
How digitalisation is a catalyst for decarbonisation downstream
2/11/2022
6 min read
Feature
European and UK downstream oil and gas players face both immediate and long-term challenges. Ron Beck, Senior Director Solutions Marketing, AspenTech, explains some of the challenges and opportunities, and how digitalisation can prove key on the road to net zero.
European downstream organisations are facing a dizzying array of challenges today. Typically, there is an ‘energy balancing act’ between energy security and the energy transition. This balancing act offers an unprecedented opportunity for European energy companies. However, the reason for the lack of consensus on future downstream strategy principally relates to the volatility of the market and the challenge of predicting future transition and growth patterns.
There is also uncertainty when gauging energy demand and prices, as well as risks related to which energy transition pathways will become winners in European markets, especially given the immaturity and rapid innovation in areas such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), hydrogen production and use, and new sustainable energy and fuel technologies.
Beyond the short-term energy security concerns, brought to light by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, there is a longer-term dilemma, which may be considered a dual challenge. Global population growth over the next 30 years is anticipated to be 1–2bn people (with associated energy and chemical demand) whilst the carbon emissions from downstream industry needs to approach net zero over the same period.