Why does the Energy Sector need Intelligent Automation?

In a world facing a growing demand for energy but an increased distrust for the sector due to its polluting effects on the environment, there is a need for transformation. The focus is more on using renewable sources of energy and reducing the dependence on fossil fuel driven units. The sector has come under increased scrutiny by the regulatory agencies and aims at transforming itself by incorporating RPA in energy. Further, as the sector has seen the entry of innovative start-ups and new players in the generation and distribution chain, there is a growing demand for transparency, cost optimization, streamlining of the value chain, and harnessing sustainable energy sources.

To sustain in such changing times where the dynamics of the energy sector are mostly driven by an informed global opinion, bringing in intelligent automation in the energy industry is the need of the hour. The sector needs to embrace the three Ds, namely, Decarbonization, Decentralization, and Deregulation to sustain itself in the long run and fulfill the growing energy needs of the consumers. In fact, the consumer base is steadily shifting from a traditionally passive one to a more sophisticated and demanding one – also known as ‘prosumers.’

To cater to the three Ds and vocal prosumers, the energy sector needs to leverage state-of-the-art technologies such as Robotics Process Automation (RPA) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). These will help boost efficiencies and productivity, manage the equilibrium between demand and supply, transform the business models, and offer superior customer experiences.

Why intelligent automation in the energy industry?

The energy industry is beset with several challenges. These include the rising cost of generation, changing regulatory policies, the presence of legacy systems for generation, distribution, and administration, fluctuating commodity prices, and shifting demand. Let us cite some user cases where RPA in energy has led to transformation and better efficiencies in the value chain.

1. World’s biggest natural gas company, Gazprom of Russia used RPA to automatically verify the meter readings of its consumers. Consequently, in the first two weeks of the project going live, an average employee was able to identify around 130 invalid meter readings thereby saving around 10 hours of work.
2. In the renewable energy sector, Xcel Energy, the US-based company used data from sensors fitted to the wind turbines to make accurate forecasts about the wind conditions. This could be made possible due to the application of intelligent energy industry solutions such as AI and predictive analytics. The result of such innovative use of automated solutions was increased efficiency in energy generation and a reduced cost for the end-users to the tune of USD 60 million.

Benefits of using intelligent automation in the energy sector

With RPA and AI technologies being increasingly adopted by energy and utilities, the accrued benefits are many.

• Increase in the quality of operations
• Better accuracy of data
• Improved agility of workforce
• Increase in productivity
• Quicker turnaround time for service requests
• Better consistency of data
• Optimized use of resources to complete a process
• Better compliance with regulatory protocols
• Actionable operational insights

Digital transformation in energy sector

Energy and utilities have to go for digitalization and upgrade of their legacy systems to transform into proficient entities for better sustainability and profitability. The utilities need to focus on upstream and midstream activities, besides on renewables. However, in order to maximum ROI, they must reengineer the processes before digitalization is implemented. Also, a mindset needs to be inculcated wherein such technologies complement the skills of the workforce. The employees must be taken into confidence that the use of such technologies is going to be beneficial for everyone in the long run.

By using RPA in energy, the utilities can address the shortcomings in areas such as power generation, distribution, smart grids, demand and supply, and customer services. With the multi-faceted and multipurpose role of RPA and AI, energy utilities providers are able to create an infinite number of use cases for every context. These can come in handy when developing energy and utilities software solutions for capacity augmentation and other benefits.

Conclusion

Although the use of RPA and AI has still not reached the desired levels, the potential gains are immense. From analyzing grid behavior under variable wind speeds and conditions and leak detection in distribution channels to streamlining the back-office and enabling faster resolution of service requests, intelligent automation in the energy industry cannot be ignored anymore.

Michael works for Cigniti Technologies, which is the world's first Independent Software Testing Company to be appraised at CMMI-SVC Level 5, and an ISO 9001:2008 & ISO 27001:2013 certified organization.