The JV between Aramco and Cognite will develop new solutions to digitise industrial processes across Saudi Arabia, the broader Middle East and North Africa region
Officials of Aramco and Cognite at the JV signing ceremony. (Credit: Saudi Arabian Oil Co.)
Saudi oil and gas company Aramco has agreed with Cognite to form a new joint venture to develop digital solutions across industries such as and oil and gas, power and utilities, manufacturing and shipping.
The new joint venture will focus mainly on digitalising industries in Saudi Arabia and the broader Middle East and North Africa region.
Expected to be operational next year, after securing all the required regulatory approvals, the new JV will develop, distribute and deploy end-to-end digital solutions.
The solutions from the joint venture are expected to transform production, yield optimisation, offer predictive maintenance, digitise workforce, provide advanced safety measures, while reducing the environmental footprint of operations, across industries.
It will leverage Cognite’s flagship industrial data platform, Cognite Data Fusion, as its core technology, while harnessing cloud capabilities for data hosting, analytics and artificial intelligence.
Cognite is an industrial software company that aims to support the full-scale data-driven transformation of heavy industries.
Aramco technical services senior vice-president Ahmad Al Sa’adi said: “Aramco has pursued an ambitious Digital Transformation Program with the goal of transforming the company into the world’s leading digitalized energy corporation, maximizing value for shareholders and spearheading digital innovation in the energy sector globally.
“The JV with Cognite aims to create advanced end-to-end digital software solutions in Saudi Arabia, which will maximise local content, contribute to GDP growth, create new jobs, accelerate digital talent development and sustain Aramco’s resilience.”
Aker president and CEO Cognite board of directors chairman Øyvind Eriksen said: “We are committed to making our strategic partnership with the world’s largest integrated oil and gas company a resounding success.
“We believe Aramco’s deep operational expertise, combined with Cognite’s track record of developing and deploying industrial software for digital frontrunners, will be a powerful catalyst for the commercial success of the joint venture and the advancement of digital transformation across heavy-asset industries.”
Earlier this month, Aramco formed a JV with Baker Hughes to create Novel to manufacture non-metallic products to be used in the energy sector.