Next-level asset management for next-level performance: How upstream operators can get more out of their existing assets

Posted: September 28, 2026

The challenge: When every barrel counts more than ever

For upstream companies, the cost of unplanned downtime has always added up — research from Senseye Predictive Maintenance shows that the average oil and gas producer loses up to $128 million per year.[1] But in today's environment, that math has fundamentally changed. With the 2026 supply shock driving spot prices into the $80–100-per-barrel range and oil price volatility running at roughly double the levels of calmer periods, every unit of lost production now carries a far greater financial penalty than it did just a year ago.

This isn't the gradual demand recovery the industry was planning for. The disruption of the Strait of Hormuz removed a material volume of crude and LNG from global markets almost overnight, triggering one of the largest energy price surges in years. The World Bank estimates that energy prices jumped more than 20% following the outbreak of the conflict. For operators, the implication is stark: in a high-price, high-volatility market, the value of protecting uptime and squeezing more from existing assets has never been higher.

That pressure is falling unevenly — and it's falling hardest on the assets many upstream operators rely on most. As Gulf supply is constrained, non-Gulf assets in the North Sea, the U.S., Latin America, and West Africa are being pushed harder to fill the gap and meet global demand. Running this equipment closer to its limits, for longer, elevates both the probability and the cost of failure. The barrels these assets produce are now some of the most valuable in the world, which makes any unplanned outage not just an operational headache, but a direct hit to revenue at the worst possible time.

Compounding the challenge, assets are getting older and so is the workforce. As this generation of workers retires, departing employees take their knowledge and experience with them — precisely when operators are asking more of their aging fleets than ever before. To capitalize on today's opportunities, upstream companies will need to rely on new technologies to monitor, manage, and maintain their assets at the next level.

First, the foundation: Data management

Data is the foundation of successful production operations. IBM estimates that the average offshore production platform has 80,000 real-time data streams.[2] With so much data, upstream operators must have a scalable data management infrastructure to collect, manage, contextualize, and analyze it all. Without that data management foundation, turning raw data streams into actionable insights is next to impossible.

Luckily, where data management is concerned, a number of upstream companies have a head start. Many leading exploration and production companies have long since adopted AVEVA™ PI System™, the industry standard for operational data management. AVEVA PI System allows these companies to properly manage millions of streams of data and enable production and asset monitoring, optimization, and analytics.

For a long time now, asset management and reliability teams have relied on AVEVA PI System for a condition-based approach to maintenance. AVEVA PI System empowers teams to monitor operations in real time, react quickly to equipment anomalies, and notify field personnel and engineering teams of any potential issues.

These improvements are markedly more sophisticated than simple schedule-based maintenance, and for some pieces of equipment, provide the perfect solution for optimal performance. Other types of equipment, however, require a far more sophisticated approach. High-value equipment with long lead times or equipment that is especially critical to production can benefit from having any failures predicted as early as possible.

Next, sophisticated APM: Advanced analytics

The average upstream company using AVEVA PI System has a massive wealth of data. Within all that data lies the answer to maximizing production, minimizing cost, and ensuring safe and reliable operations.

By layering in advanced asset performance management (APM) solutions and predictive analytics, upstream operators can start to refine their maintenance strategies and identify patterns and correlations in their data that can provide very early warnings of future failures. Once these predictive models are running in real time, operations teams are more informed about asset and equipment health and are empowered to make optimal maintenance decisions.

Want to learn more ways upstream operators can get better performance out of their assets? Read our white paper and discover how leading upstream companies are unlocking more value in their existing data for safer, more predictable operations.

^{[1] “The True Cost of Downtime 2022.” Senseye Predictive Maintenance. Published by Siemens, 2023.}

^{[2] Evenson, Ole, and David Womak. “How AI can pump new life into oilfields.” Expert Insights, IBM.}