Aspentech innovating in technology to help the energy industry on the path to sustainability

Digital technologies are fundamental to providing the insights that will identify the future of the energy industry, and energy companies need to accelerate their transition to more sustainable operations and determine the best pathway for long-term sustainability, according to Antonio Pietri, President and Chief Executive Officer, AspenTech.

Speaking to Energy Connects ahead of ADIPEC 2022, Pietri outlined the road ahead for the industry and innovations that AspenTech is bringing to the market to help companies on the digitalisation journey.

What are your thoughts on how digital technologies can help oil and gas companies navigate the energy transition?

Digital technologies will play a critical role in the oil and gas industry’s efforts to adapt to a VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) environment and ultimately reach net-zero goals. In the immediate term, refineries around the world are already using tools like digital twins, digital simulation and AI-powered predictive maintenance to optimise assets and improve the sustainability of their current operations.

As refineries continue to decarbonise operations, digital tools will be at the center of efforts to effectively integrate low-carbon energy sources into their operations and will allow operators to better balance energy sources while identifying efficiencies across their entire production complex.

Going forward, refiners will also need better visibility of emissions and energy use, and digital technologies will play a significant role in helping to track emissions across operations and deliver insight into areas where improvements can be made.

What are the innovations that AspenTech is bringing to the market to help companies on the digitalisation journey? What are the opportunities that you see there for industry-wide collaborations?

As capital-intensive industries transition and adapt to the new fundamentals of supply and demand and low carbon energy sources, AspenTech continues to innovate to provide our customers with products and solutions that help them in their path to operational excellence and sustainability.

Today, our solutions play a critical role in advancing sustainability technology pathways for resource efficiencies by reducing energy usage and waste; supporting the energy transition through innovative carbon capture solutions, including the use of hydrogen as a new energy source; co-processing with bio feedstocks in refineries, and by promoting a circular economy with the aim to disrupt plastics recycling and other materials. All of this while helping them achieve profitable outcomes in their business.

In today’s constantly changing environment, our goal is to continuously evolve with our customers and partners through co-innovation to identify new opportunities and find new pathways.

How important is ADIPEC to your business and future prospects, as well as to the global oil, gas, and energy industry?

Our customers are seeking innovations that enable them to improve efficiency and maximise business performance while simultaneously meeting sustainability goals. At ADIPEC, we are looking forward to exploring ways to address the dual challenge of meeting the increasing resource demands of the growing global population while also meeting critical sustainability goals.

What are you looking forward to at ADIPEC this year? What will be the major theme for AspenTech’s appearance at ADIPEC?

Every capital-intensive business operating today is confronted with a dual challenge as outlined above: to match the resource demands of today’s growing population while meeting critical environmental goals to ensure a sustainable tomorrow. The dialogue within the energy industry has changed. Digital transformation is recognised as a major contributor to meeting sustainability goals globally.

To meet society’s expectations, energy companies need to accelerate their transition to more sustainable operations and determine the best pathway for long-term sustainability. Digital technologies are fundamental to providing the insights that will identify the future of the industry. Forming strategic partnerships, co-innovation and collaboration underpin the long-term success of the industry globally and events such as ADIPEC will help us all pioneer a new era to make sustainability sustainable.