Exploration and Resource Identification

Hydrocarbon Exploration: EO technologies facilitate the detection and monitoring of hydrocarbon resources by analyzing spectral data that indicate the presence of hydrocarbons. This process involves using remote sensing techniques to identify specific geological features, such as rock types and soil moisture content, which are indicative of oil and gas reserves. The benefit of this approach is a more targeted exploration strategy, reducing the environmental impact and costs associated with drilling exploratory wells. Additionally, EO can track changes over time, providing ongoing insights into the potential size and extraction viability of these resources.

Mineral Exploration: Satellite imagery and hyperspectral data are invaluable for identifying mineral deposits in remote or otherwise inaccessible areas. By analyzing the reflected light from the Earth’s surface across various spectral bands, EO technologies can detect specific mineral signatures, guiding exploration efforts more efficiently. This capability significantly reduces the time and resources required for ground-based surveys, offering a cost-effective solution for identifying viable mining sites. Moreover, it enables continuous monitoring of environmental conditions, assisting in compliance with regulatory standards and sustainable mining practices.

Predictive Analytics for Resource Management: Leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms on EO datasets opens new avenues for predictive analytics in resource management. This involves using machine learning models to analyze historical and real-time EO data to predict future trends in resource availability, environmental conditions, and energy demand. Such predictive insights can assist in strategic planning, investment decisions, and operational adjustments to optimize resource extraction and energy production.

Environmental Monitoring and Compliance

Environmental Impact Assessments: EO technologies play a critical role in conducting environmental impact assessments (EIAs) for energy projects and mining operations. Satellite data can provide historical and current images of the project area, allowing for a comprehensive analysis of the environmental baseline and ongoing impacts. This includes monitoring changes in land use, vegetation cover, and water bodies, as well as identifying potential pollution sources. The benefits include ensuring compliance with environmental regulations, minimizing ecological disruption, and facilitating the restoration of mining sites post-extraction. In some cases, EO-based products could also include the production of environmental impact assessment “certificates”.

Emissions Monitoring and Carbon Accounting: Satellites equipped with EO technologies can detect and quantify greenhouse gas emissions from energy production sites and raw material extraction operations. This use case involves analyzing atmospheric data to identify and measure emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gases. The advantage of this approach is its ability to provide accurate, transparent, and timely emissions data, supporting compliance with environmental regulations and carbon trading schemes. It also aids companies in managing their carbon footprint and advancing toward sustainability goals.

Infrastructure and Operations Monitoring

Pipeline and Infrastructure Surveillance: EO technologies offer a solution for monitoring pipelines and other critical infrastructure across vast and often remote areas. Satellite imagery can detect unauthorized construction activities, land subsidence, and vegetation changes that might indicate potential risks to pipeline integrity. This continuous monitoring capability enables prompt response to potential threats, minimizing the risk of leaks or other disruptions. The benefits include enhanced safety, reduced operational risks, and lower costs associated with physical inspections.

Energy Network conditions monitoring: The situational awareness and monitoring capabilities of EO contribute through application such as monitoring the structural integrity of assets including towers, poles, wind plants and solar plants, monitoring land subsidence around energy infrastructure such as pipelines and plants, assessment of vegetation encroachments, and allowing for asset condition management damages, degradation, corrosion, etc.

Illegal Mining Monitoring: Detecting and monitoring illegal mining activities through landscape change detection, highlighting EO’s capability in enforcing regulatory compliance and protecting environmental integrity.

Renewable Energy Site Assessment: For the renewable energy sector, EO technologies are instrumental in identifying optimal sites for solar and wind energy projects. This involves analyzing data on solar irradiance, wind patterns, land use, and environmental constraints to determine the most suitable locations for development. EO technologies help maximize energy production efficiency and sustainability. Additionally, ongoing monitoring supports operational optimization and maintenance planning, ensuring long-term project viability.

Smart Grid Management: Leveraging EO data, energy companies can enhance smart grid management by forecasting power generation from renewable sources. Satellite imagery and weather data contribute to accurate predictions of solar and wind energy production, allowing for better integration of renewable energy into the grid. This use case promotes a more resilient and efficient energy system, facilitating the transition to renewable energy sources and supporting efforts to combat climate change.

Infrastructure and Service Planning

Supply chain insights: EO data support market analysts, traders, investors, energy operators and regulators, governments, international banking institutions and ultimately, citizens, to better understand the new energy dynamics shifting under the pressure of climate change. AI and advanced analytics are applied to EO for applications such as reservoir monitoring, heavy oil production mapping, underground gas storage, sophisticated methane-detection technologies, etc.

Energy Site Selection: For the renewable energy sector, EO technologies are instrumental in identifying optimal sites for solar and wind energy projects. This involves the analysis of historical data for example, wind, solar irradiation, ocean currents, ocean temperature (e.g. for OTEC or SWAC), snow cover, and environmental constraints to determine the most suitable locations for development. This includes, for instance, solar plant production estimates based on solar irradiation forecasts or hydropower production estimates based on snow cover smelting. Additionally, ongoing monitoring supports operational optimization and maintenance planning, ensuring long-term project viability.

Risk assessment for renewable energy assets: Energy assets are exposed to a variety of natural risks which can put in danger the people working on site, damage equipment or negatively impact production. EO can contribute to the assessment of the level of risk to prevent/mitigate the effects of adverse events on the exploitation of energy (including the protection of workers maintaining offshore wind platforms for instance). Relevant EO-based products and services include the monitoring of dangerous sub-surface currents, iceberg detection and tracking, etc.