Low Oil Prices Are Causing Companies To Create New Innovative Technologies
The fallen oil prices have triggered new creativity in oil companies when finding ways to get the most bang for their buck. Unlike the past when oil companies were focused on drilling LOTS of oil FAST, the main concern these days seems to be drilling oil efficiently – producing the most amount of oil for the least amount of money – and oil companies are banking on advanced technology to help them do so.
Companies have started using high-tech equipment such as lasers and data analytics prior to drilling to check if a new oil well will give them the most oil for their money. Some are testing out new technologies that will produce more oil from both old and new wells. Refracking – using new advanced fracking technologies to get more out of wells that have been fracked in the past – is becoming a common practice, along with using advanced software and sensors to determine the best place to use certain materials to produce the most amount of oil.
The big players in the oil and gas industry are investing more money in R&D this year. Eric Gebhardt, Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Engineering for General Electric’s oil and gas division, says that his divisions plans on increasing its R&D spending this year in search for new technologies.
“You have to keep your focus on finding new and innovative solutions,” said Bruce Tocher, manager for shale oil and gas research at Statoil, a Norwegian energy company, according to The Wall Street Journal. “You need those solutions more than ever.”
Contact a Swanson Reed specialist for more information on claiming the R&D tax credit for qualified activities in the oil and gas industry.
Source: www.wsj.com
