New Communications Technology for the 21st Century Oil and Gas Frontiers

The era of easy oil and gas is over. The 21^st century frontier of the oil and gas sector is increasingly in remote, hostile, and geologically challenging areas of the world. The promising hydrocarbon areas of the world, for example, the ultra-deep offshore oil plays in the Arctic, West Africa, the Gulf of Mexico, or Brazil; shale gas and oil in the U.S., China or Australia; or oil sands in Canada, demand continuous and reliable communications technologies to withstand extreme heat, ice, snow, humidity, rain, wind, and fog.

Given the extreme environments that energy companies cope with, high capacity and reliable wireless communication are indispensable for continuity and safe operations. Wireless connection helps build a foundation for many networks of broadband speed and to sustain multiple applications, such as SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems, real-time video monitoring of wells and other facilities, communications and monitoring of drill rigs, surveying location of oil and gas assets, among other functions. Technology firms point out the rise in use of satellite communication in the oil and gas industry, attributing it to the challenging locations of fossil fuel drilling. Satellite companies see great opportunities in the oil and gas sector as the latter increasingly integrates video monitoring of wellheads and drilling. Fiber optic technology is also gaining a market share in the energy sector as the distributed fiber-optic sensor sector is expected to grow to $1.1 billion in 2016, 70% of which would be linked to the oil and gas market.

As the use of satellite, radio and fiber optic technologies are becoming integral parts of modern communications for all aspects of oil and gas operations, their application for some of the challenging and hostile areas of the world is still sparse, particularly in emerging markets. For example, the deepwater oil drilling in West Africa constitutes a majority of total oil and gas output for the region, but some of the most reliable communications protocols used globally are still absent in this part of Africa. The existing conventional and wireless communication in West Africa has been subject to breakdowns and stoppages, jeopardizing the safety of rigs and personnel. Remote communications are still difficult in many regions of Africa. In general, oil and gas fields that cover many miles of remote and harsh parts of the world are often short of cellular connection. If energy companies are to profit from operating in extreme environments, the 21^st century oil and gas development is likely to set the level playing field for investment in state-of-the-art communications technology, whether the drilling is in Africa or the Arctic.

Critical Point for U.S. Gas Flaring

A sign of unconventional oil boom in the U.S. can now be seen from satellite photographs of flared gas from oil wells. NASA’s pictures from the space show brightly lit areas of sparsely populated Northwest North Dakota amidst the darkness of the Great Plains. Flaring of associated gas from oil wells in North Dakota jumped up to over 50 percent since 2011, according to a non-profit organization Ceres dedicated to improved corporate sustainability. Associated gas is a form of natural gas that is found during petroleum extraction and it can be captured and processed for electricity generation or reinjected to oilfields for enhanced oil production. Hesitance of the oil industry to invest in expensive infrastructure to capture the associated gas, in view of record low natural gas prices, has catapulted the U.S. to the ranks of 5^th worldwide for the highest volume of gas flared, nearing the levels of Russia and Nigeria. 

Although flaring is less environmentally damaging than venting natural gas into the atmosphere, it is a pollutant that emits large amounts of carbon dioxide. The Bakken oil formation in North Dakota has turned this Upper Midwestern state into #2 producer of oil in the U.S. after Texas. North Dakota is also the largest contributor of flared gas. According to some estimates, the value of burnt off gas in North Dakota is close to $100 million a month. With tripling of flared gas over the last two years, companies operating in North Dakota are under pressure to reduce flaring or pay royalties and taxes in compliance with the state regulations. The state’s regulations allow oil producers gas flaring for one year without paying taxes or royalties on it, with a possibility of extending this provision on the grounds of economic difficulties of linking wells to a natural gas pipeline. After this period, “producers can continue flaring but are responsible for the same taxes and royalties they would have paid if the natural gas went to market.” 

Gas flaring is now a political issue in North Dakota. In an unprecedented move, mineral rights owners in this state have filed 10 class-action lawsuits against oil producers this October, demanding millions in dollars in lost royalties from flared gas in fracked oilfields and hoping that such pressure would expedite flare reduction. More landowners expressed interest in joining the litigation against oil companies in North Dakota. While the process is in the early stages, it is widely believed that a successful outcome of these lawsuits may increase the cost of oil drilling and slow down this state’s booming economy. However, reduction of gas flaring does not have to end in a zero-sum game. Norway’s oil production did not stop because of strict regulations imposed on management of associated gas. Oil drilling in Norway is allowed only after solutions on handling associated gas are presented to the authorities. The U.S. oil industry has reached the point that it cannot ignore the scale of economic and environmental cost of flared gas. Given the latest legal pushback from landowners in North Dakota, the U.S. has a chance to learn from the best practices in harnessing the associated gas