Abstract
The Brazilian oil industry is facing a period of significant techno-economic challenges to meet the increase in reserves and production in ultra-deep waters. The subsea production system is an essential technological frontier to ensure the technical and economic viability of oil fields. Thus, the use of digital technologies fits in with these goals and already shows promising results, which stimulate companies in the development of digitalization. For this, the main aim of this chapter is to investigate the role of digital transformation to the subsea productive system of the Brazilian oil industry. By using the analytical and theoretical framework of innovation system, the author explores the relevance, capacity, and strategy developed for the use of digital transformation into subsea production system activities. It was possible to identify the critical features of techno-economic development and conclude that despite the existing capacity, coordination, interactions, and funding are issues to be promoted and improved.
TopIntroduction
The Brazilian oil industry has been experiencing technological challenges since the 1970s with the development of exploration and production activities in deep and ultra-deep waters. However, the discovery of large reserves in the pre-salt and the need for recovery of mature fields require the advancement of the technological frontier to enable production in the best cost benefit of resources and time (IEL & Pinto Jr, 2018; Rystad, 2019). The exploitation potential and the high productivity of fields in pre-salt environment raise the production forecast to levels that place the country as one of the world's leading producers (Mendes et al., 2017; EPE, 2020). In 2019, according ANP (2020), the Brazilian oil production presented an increase of 7.8% in the early comparison and the offshore production represented 96.3% of total. Only Pre-Salt accounted for more than 60% of national production.
Greenfield contracts realized in the Brazilian marine environment demand technological and knowledge development (Rystad, 2019). According to Bai and Bai (2016), the activities in marine environment are complex due to depth, coast distance, temperature, pressure and corrosivity. Moreover, activities related to supply services and equipment production for subsea processing mobilize investments, innovations as well as subsea engineering from different agents (Globaldata, 2018).
Recently, the Brazilian Subsea Productive System (SPS) needed to improve their technological developments due to the increasing complexity demanded in the pre-salt environment as well as the financial constraints (IEL & Pinto Jr, 2018). And the technological improvement has been involving a range of innovations with the use of advanced materials, mechanical engineering, robotic, electronic, computational platforms, etc.
The digital transformation impacts the entire oil industry by means of the improvement in equipment production, the reduction of costs and time operation, the redesign of activities as well as the maintenance of asset integrity (Evaristo & Filho, 2018). The potential of this technologies in Subsea Productive System is driven by need to build data analysis and forecasts, enable real-time insights, optimize productivity, guarantee the operational security and pursue the redesign of subsea arrangement to reduce the topside of platform (BHGE, 2017; Clifford et al., 2018). Petrobras, the country's leading oil company, dedicates a position on the executive board for digital transformation and innovation. Other large multinational suppliers with relevant market share in the Subsea Productive System market follow the same organizational strategy.
Then, the main aim of this chapter is investigating the role of digital transformation in the Subsea Productive System of the Brazilian oil industry. By using the analytical and theoretical framework of Innovation System, the author explores the relevance, capacity and strategy developed for the use of digital transformation in subsea productive system activities.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Subsea Engineering: The knowledge area responsible for the design and installation of equipment and structures below the surface of the sea.
Integrity Management: Term used to describe the practice of managing an asset (power plant, oil rig, refinery, etc.) to ensure the efficient operation, maintaining the safety of environment and professionals.
Underwater Vehicle: A vehicle designed to operate underwater. It can be autonomous or remotely operated.
Oil Operator: The owner of the right to produce an oil and gas well. The company that serves as the overall manager and decision-maker of a drilling project.
Subsea: Subsea is fully submerged ocean equipment, services and operations. Usually related to the offshore exploitation and production, in deep ocean waters, or on the seabed.
Innovation Policy: Is the interface between research and technological development policy and industrial policy and aims to create a conducive framework for bringing ideas to market.
Industrial Policy: The strategic effort by the state to encourage economic transformation, i.e., the shift from lower to higher productivity activities, between or within sectors.