When you’re an oil and gas behemoth of ExxonMobil’s magnitude, identifying, developing, and deploying new technologies to improve drilling efficiency and worker safety and increase output are about as vital as a business artery gets. Exxon is no stranger to any of these. The year: 2021, when the company initially tested automated drilling in the Permian with the world’s first fully automated land rig. Since then, Exxon has deployed this technology in offshore Guyana and has most recently come full circle in the Permian.

Reese Energy Consulting today is following the latest from Exxon which operates 30+ rigs in the Permian—two of which are automated drilling rigs with robotic arms to move, position, and connect pipe, dramatically reducing the danger to workers on the rig floor, accelerate well development, and boost oil production. Exxon looks to nearly double its Permian oil recovery by 40% to 2.5 MMBOED by 2030. That’s a huge goal by any measure. But with 40 new technologies under its business hat and a plan to transition 50% of its drilling rig fleet to automated with robotics by 2028, Exxon is setting a new bar into what’s happening next in the nation’s largest oil and gas field.