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Arab Finance: Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi met with officials from SLB Egypt to discuss expanding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) across Egypt's petroleum sector to increase production, develop the Egypt Upstream Gateway (EUG), improve energy efficiency, and reduce carbon emissions, as per a statement.
The meeting brought together Sherif Bayoumy, SLB Egypt and Eastern Mediterranean Country Manager, and Bassel Abdelwahab, Vice President of Digital Solutions at SLB Egypt, to review AI applications for exploration and production activities, as well as digital technologies that support operational performance.
Badawi said the ministry is expanding the practical use of AI across the petroleum industry as part of efforts to increase production, improve operational efficiency, lower costs, and support data-driven decision-making.
He added that the EUG is a key element of this strategy and is being developed using AI technologies and advanced data analytics to improve the assessment of investment opportunities, reduce investment risks, accelerate decision-making, and help companies identify prospective exploration areas more accurately.
The minister also stressed the importance of prioritizing AI applications capable of delivering direct and near-term production gains from existing fields.
Moreover, he called for establishing an integrated digital system linking geological and geophysical data with production data and control centers to enable real-time performance monitoring, predict operational issues before they occur, and improve asset management in cooperation with global technology partners.
During the meeting, SLB presented its latest AI-powered digital solutions for analyzing geological and geophysical data, evaluating reservoirs, identifying exploration opportunities, improving field management, increasing production, and enhancing asset performance.
The company said its technologies continuously analyze operational data to predict equipment failures at an early stage and distinguish between production declines caused by operational issues and those resulting from natural reservoir performance, enabling faster corrective action.
The discussions also covered AI applications that support energy efficiency and emissions reduction. SLB outlined technologies for real-time energy consumption monitoring, equipment performance optimization, early methane emission detection, and reducing gas flaring by identifying opportunities to recover and utilize gas. The company added that these solutions can also improve compressor and pump efficiency while minimizing energy losses.
The two sides agreed to continue coordinating on prioritizing AI applications that offer a rapid return on investment to support higher production and improve operational efficiency.
