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Blockchain has moved beyond its status as a niche technology and is now considered a valuable technology that can transform many traditional industries by bringing digital automation, security and huge cost savings.
Blockchain as a distributed online database (read about its benefits here), the core concept of this revolutionary technology, has incredible potential for all sectors of the economy, as many existing industries still rely on outdated legacy systems for data storage, security and other administrative tasks.
The maintenance of databases involving many stakeholders can now be digitally automated quickly, securely, shared and updated in real time by leveraging solutions using blockchain technology.
In the oil and gas industry in particular, blockchain-based solutions can be useful.
As a capital-intensive industry, spare parts, leaks, repairs and many other things have to be constantly tracked across the globe with the involvement of different stakeholders.
As an extractive industry, international supply chains become extensive and difficult to follow.
Finally, as an international business, legal agreements have to be drafted and executed in many jurisdictions.
All of these areas can be improved with the application of blockchain to digitally automate these processes, securing, sharing and updating at the same time through a bespoke solution accessible to all stakeholders.
What services does blockchain provide to oil and gas companies?
1) Product Traceability + Supply Chain
The supply chain of the product and parts needed to run an operation in the oil and gas industry spans the globe.
Currently, they are tracked through a complicated network of redundant systems that create inefficiencies and contradictory information from stakeholders using different tracking systems.
The process is not only time-consuming, but in most cases it is done manually with frequent and costly errors.
Blockchain, as a trusted and tamper-proof distributed LEDGER that is updated in real time, offers a solution to these problems.
It maintains an immutable record of events, be they transactions, transfers, entries or any kind of recordable information.
By implementing a tracking solution that records information in a blockchain-based solution, logistics costs and erroneous data can be significantly reduced and bring higher business margins to companies.
2) Blockchain + IoT devices
Another solution for the oil and gas industry that is being promoted today is IoT devices.
But the amount of data reported by such sensors is difficult to manage using traditional reporting systems that are not as secure and transparent as blockchain-based solutions.
If implemented in the wrong way, IoT sensors can become part of the problem, but blockchain can solve this situation again.
Blockchain solutions are able to directly record and validate the data provided by the IoT network immediately.
In real time, this data will be transmitted to all stakeholders using the blockchain solution without any contradiction.
A blockchain solution combined with IoT systems offers unprecedented service value.
3) Smart contracts
Finally, oil and gas markets are global and have to go through a web of legal agreements and sales cycles.
In the past, this has been one of the most costly parts, as armies of lawyers and administrators have to manually confirm each document.
But blockchains can also streamline this process and save costs.
Smart contracts, one of blockchain's unique value propositions, are self-verifying pieces of code that are automatically executed once programmed conditions are met.
Once launched, a smart contract cannot be tampered with, and the business logic encoded in it can be seen by all participants in the network.
This creates a new level of transparency and efficiency.
All these features are provided by a single technology, the blockchain central distributed ledger.
Industries of the future, depending on how well they have integrated blockchain into their business verticals, will have gained a huge competitive advantage.
Those companies lacking the resources or expertise to implement bespoke blockchain solutions will need a capable partner.
EMURGO Trace Solution Offers Added Value to Oil and Gas Companies
Due to its complexity and specialised expertise, a blockchain-based solution is best built and implemented by those who have the knowledge and experience to build bespoke solutions suited to companies' specific needs.
This is especially true for companies that are not native to the blockchain ecosystem.
As a result, developing and successfully implementing a blockchain-based solution can be very difficult without a capable partner.
EMURGO, as a global emerging technologies company and founding entity of the Cardano blockchain protocol, is an industry leader in developing custom blockchain solutions for enterprises.
Our customised enterprise solution, EMURGO Trace, is in live production with companies in the coffee industry to trace products through their supply chains in Indonesia and the Asian region.
EMURGO Trace is flexible enough to fit the specificities of supply chains in the oil and gas industry, as well as to offer the benefits mentioned above, including full traceability, compatibility with IoT devices, smart contracts, etc.
To start exploring the solutions that EMURGO Trace can bring to your business or project, please contact [email protected] for more information.
