IBM oils advances

IBM has opened its $2.6m Oil Sands Centre of Excellence in Calgary, which will help petroleum producers test and use new technologies that will lower costs and simplify oil recovery. The centre is the fifth IBM facility focused on the global oil and gas industry to open in the past two years.

According to IBM, the development of Alberta's oil sands will be one of the world's largest capital investments, with the petroleum industry expected to invest between $42.4bn billion and $84.8bn within the next decade. Capital costs are said to have doubled in the past five years and many projects are behind schedule and over budget. IBM says the new centre will promote collaboration among all industry players, helping them do business more effectively.

Located in IBM's Calgary offices, the centre will introduce a variety of technologies including radio frequency identification, three dimensional data visualisation, kiosks, and software integration. These technologies will improve construction and project management, labour productivity, business processes and environmental management.

‘With this Oil Sands Centre of Excellence, IBM will expand the availability of a new generation of intelligent technologies to allow the oil and gas industry to visualize, virtualise and integrate business processes more efficiently," said Steve Edwards, IBM Global Business Services leader, Global Chemicals and Petroleum industry. ‘We're inviting oil sands companies and industry stakeholders to work with us at the Centre to create new and innovative solutions for this burgeoning industry.’