Possibilities to use blockchain technologies in gas industry. A case of material and technical resources management during well repair
Modern challenges require the Uni ed gas supply system to operate sustainably and reliably. One of the main factors of stability is an increase in the volume and ef ciency of underground gas storage facilities, which is not possible without organizational processes of construction and timely, high-quality repair of wells including those aimed at improving productivity.The fourth industrial revolution, called Industry 4.0, is con dently entering all spheres of life. To meet modern challenges, the production processes of the gas industry must comply with advanced technological trends. One of the key technologies that can make revolutionary changes in the oil and gas industry is blockchain. The question of applicability and scope of blockchain implementation in the oil and gas sector is an open discussion. At the same time, a number of companies in the industry and technological startups already have experience in building and implementing blockchain systems.In this article, the authors analyze the private production process, such as repair of gas wells including the subprocess of accounting necessary material and technical resources (MTR). They suggest application of the blockchain technology to minimize the shortcomings of existing management systems identi ed during the analysis. Thus, the transition from strictly regulated project approaches to dynamic scenarios veri ed by all participants of the process can be carried out.The issues of relevance of incoming information, timeliness of decision-making, and adoption of decisions by all participants of the process, elimination of the human factor in the accounting of MTR, availability of reliable database about consumption and affordability of a particular resource at a particular well or warehouse come to the fore. This, in turn, should become an occasion for development and application of cross-functional technologies using big data, which require the joint efforts of technological production startups, research institutes, engineering centers and industry enterprises.