Growth of Oil and Gas Drilling Automation

Automated drilling is boring through the oil and gas industry, as service providers roll out new technologies and producers get more comfortable testing them in the field. 

The robotic drilling market is projected to reach $967.35 million by 2028, a CAGR of 6.1% from 2021 to 2028. The Drilling Systems Automation Roadmap (DSA-R) Report is tracking where the industry currently stands and what initiatives need to be prioritized as technology advances. 

From Society of Petroleum Engineers

Automation has been deployed on many rigs in small ways, but big players like Schlumberg, NOV, and Nabors are working on solutions that will fully automate work that to this point has had to be done by humans. 

Nabors, with the help of ExxonMobil, is testing what it calls the “world’s first fully automated land rig.”

Schlumberger and NOV are combining surface and downhole drilling automation solutions with rig automation in an effort to accelerate the adoption of automated drilling solutions.

Automated drilling can’t yet be called an industry standard, but early adopters are digging in.