IBM et Statoil vont développer des solutions innovantes pour l'exploitation du pétrole et du gaz permettant une gestion optimale des coûts

Safe and cost-effective solutions for major energy player

Oslo, Norway February 3, 2006 – IBM has entered into an agreement with Statoil, one of the world's biggest sellers of crude oil and natural gas, to develop solutions for existing and new oil and gas fields. The agreement was signed by a consortium of leading oil industry providers; ABB, IBM, Aker Kvaerner and SKF. The total value of the three and a half year project is around 15 million euro.

Statoil’s use of new technologies is expected to extend the lifespan of existing oil and gas fields, while increasing safety measures and reducing the risks of environmental issues. The solutions are also expected to be applied for the development and production of new oil fields in areas of adverse conditions including the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea. The agreement with IBM and the other partners underlines Statoil’s commitment to be an oil industry leader while also developing future technologies.

The project will provide a basis for the smart sensing of field operations, the integration of processing and interpretation applications, and collaborative decision-making across the enterprise.

For the Statoil project, IBM has tapped its wide range of oil industry business consultants and technology experts, as well as IBM research, the world's largest IT research organisation, using middleware based on open standards. Solutions and innovation include:

- Sensing (Recognisers, Signal Processing, Pervasive Field Operations)
- Integration (Service Orientated Architecture, Plant Data Integration, Predictive Maintenance, Enterprise Resource Planning & Enterprise Asset Management) and
- Collaboration (Visualisation, Knowledge Management, Business Intelligence, Portfolio Optimisation, Change Management)

The consortium views the project as a means of field testing new technologies, expected to strengthen the competitive stance of the Norwegian supplier industry and North Sea market players in the international oil arena.

“With global energy demands increasing, oil companies need to extract oil more efficiently. IBM's Intelligent Oil Field technology enables companies such as Statoil to monitor and manage oil deposits and production in real time, adjusting production based on market demand and across a network of oil fields," says Morten Thorkildsen, General Manager, IBM Norway. “Statoil’s application of research and information technology represents true innovation for the oil industry, combining the business of oil and gas production with advanced information technology and advanced analytics to make a real difference.”

A team of 20 begins work on the project this month.

About Statoil

Statoil is an integrated oil and gas company with 25,400 employees and activities in 31 countries. Its total revenues in 2004 came to NOK 306.2 billion. The group is operator for 60 per cent of all Norwegian oil and gas production, and its international production is rising steeply. One of the world’s biggest sellers of crude oil, Statoil is also a major supplier of natural gas in the European market and has substantial industrial operations. The group has service stations in the Scandinavian countries, Ireland, Poland, the Baltic states and Russia. Statoil is one of the world’s most environmentally-efficient producers and transporters of oil and gas. Its goal is to create value for its owners through profitable and safe operations and sustainable commercial development. Statoil is listed on the Oslo and New York stock exchanges. For more information, visit http://www.statoil.com

Source : IBM