Midstream Partners Find Growth Opportunities in Upstream Oil & Gas

Midstream Partners Find Growth Opportunities as Management Complexity of Water Climbs in Upstream Oil & Gas

With the costs of water supply and disposal set to escalate due to the increase in production volumes and water requirements per well, upstream oil & gas exploration companies are seeking ways to better manage the process and produced water. There will be a strong market demand for smarter management methods that can reduce the complexity in requirements and logistics concerning water, thus turning the market's attention toward midstream water partners.

"Upstream oil and gas exploration and production operators are facing environmental, regulatory, logistics, and technological pressures. At the same time, the industry is growing and operators have the difficult task of continuing to grow their core business while managing their activities sustainably into the future," said Seth Cutler, Principal Consultant for Energy & Water at Frost & Sullivan. "As a result, midstream partners are set to become highly influential as operators outsource their water activities and will, therefore, become central players in the sourcing, treatment, recycling, and disposal of water."

Frost & Sullivan's recent analysis, Innovations in Water Management Strategies in Upstream Oil and Gas Operations in North America, 2018, offers a "voice of the driller" perspective. The study also examines the ways in which drillers' positions are influenced by market and environmental conditions.

"The rising profile of midstream partners will also affect technology and service providers, as they increasingly look toward midstream businesses for guidance on evaluating and adopting new solutions," noted Cutler.

Effective solutions include reuse and recycling solutions, which will grow to offset a strong increase in the demand for water and produced water disposal, and Big Data and IoT solutions, which will further develop to help the industry cope with the increased complexity that is emerging.

Water reuse and recycling in the oil & gas industry will continue to grow, especially as the costs of equipment reduce. To make the most of these market opportunities, participants need to:

• Adopt applications in controls and level sensors for assets such as valves, pits, and tanks. Additional opportunities can be leveraged through the use of deeper analytics and Big Data solutions.
• Devise flexible strategies and economically competitive reuse solutions to lower the pressure on water resources.
• Implement digital IoT solutions in the future as they can offer assistance in efficient management of ever-growing water volumes and complexity.
• Manage a larger, critical mass of water for treatment and distribution and offer these services through a cost-sharing model between local operators.
• Develop deep expertise and localized knowledge of plays and basins to deliver operational support.
• Acquire or create advanced solutions for water acquisition, management, and disposal.

Innovations in Water Management Strategies in Upstream Oil and Gas Operations in North America, 2018 is part of Frost & Sullivan's global Environment & Water Growth Partnership Service program.

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Taxonomy

• Oil & Gas
• Finance and Markets
• Financing
• Economics Of Water Resources Projects
• Oil & Gas
• Fossil Fuels
• Heavy Oil
• Oil & Gas