Drones: Ensuring cost-effective maintenance of oil and gas pipelines

The report argues that drones (UAVs) can transform the oil and gas pipeline sector by reducing inspection costs by nearly 50% and improving safety. It details specific use cases across construction, operations, security, and disaster management, while proposing a regulatory sandbox approach to accelerate adoption through multi-stakeholder collaboration.

• Drones can significantly reduce the financial burden of energy infrastructure maintenance, with some industry data suggesting they could lower inspection costs by nearly 50%.
• In the construction phase, drones support project management through progress monitoring, real-time remote instructions via loudspeakers and cameras, material transport in difficult terrains, and safer blasting operations by ensuring no humans are within the blast radius.
• For operational safety and maintenance, drones are used to detect gas leaks and oil spills using specialized sensors, perform structural integrity audits, and monitor compressor stations to prevent damage.
• Drones enhance pipeline security by replacing dangerous foot patrols, performing risk assessments in sensitive areas, and providing live tracking of intruders for law enforcement.
• Environmental benefits include the ability to monitor and address methane emissions in the downstream segment and a reduction in the overall carbon footprint of operators by replacing vehicular and aerial surveillance.
• The report proposes a 'regulatory sandbox' approach where governments, operators, and drone providers collaborate to test use cases, derive flight standards, and address risks like hacking or privacy concerns before making deployment mandatory.
• Global pipeline infrastructure is expanding, with the total length of oil and gas trunk pipelines expected to reach 2.03 million kilometres by 2024, with North America, Asia, and Africa leading expansion.

APA

World Economic Forum (2022). Drones: Ensuring cost-effective maintenance of oil and gas pipelines. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Drones_Ensuring_cost_effective_maintenance_of_oil_and_gas_pipelines_2022.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Drones: Ensuring cost-effective maintenance of oil and gas pipelines. 2022. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Drones_Ensuring_cost_effective_maintenance_of_oil_and_gas_pipelines_2022.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Drones: Ensuring cost-effective maintenance of oil and gas pipelines |date=March 2022 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Drones_Ensuring_cost_effective_maintenance_of_oil_and_gas_pipelines_2022.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2022drones, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Drones: Ensuring cost-effective maintenance of oil and gas pipelines}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Drones_Ensuring_cost_effective_maintenance_of_oil_and_gas_pipelines_2022.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }