Saturday, 3 October 2026

A review by DeSmog found that AI is moving deeper into the operations of large oil and gas producers, used to locate and extract more hydrocarbons rather than cut emissions. Drawing on company announcements, industry presentations, and other public material, DeSmog traced AI across seismic exploration, drilling, equipment monitoring, and field development at Aramco, Chevron, Equinor, ExxonMobil, Shell, and TotalEnergies.

The applications DeSmog documented run from mapping seabeds and pinpointing new oil reservoirs to gauging well abandonment risks, inspecting facilities, and speeding regulatory paperwork.

Equinor re-scanned the Norwegian continental shelf using new seismic technology and AI, yielding 27 new oil discoveries, Hege Skryseth, the company's executive vice president and chief technology officer, said during a June presentation at Equinor's Capital Market Day.

Those gains carry a climate cost. One study estimated AI could lift global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by between 1.2% and 4.8%, with productivity gains in fossil fuel production driving most of that rise.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) expects global data-center electricity consumption to roughly double to approximately 950 TWh by 2030. Electricity use from AI-focused data centers is expected to triple over the same period, according to the IEA.

The agency says the power density of AI servers increased elevenfold between 2020 and 2025, and it expects a further fourfold increase by 2027. A single hyperscale AI-focused facility can reach 100 MW or more.

Six South Carolina counties imposed moratoriums on AI data centers in September, according to Charleston City Paper, lifting the number enacted since January to 13. At least two more counties are weighing similar measures, the outlet reported.

The Charleston City Paper described the moratoriums as part of a grassroots backlash against AI data center development spreading across the state.

In Wisconsin, labor groups have put forward a separate plan tied to rising power demand. Climate Jobs Wisconsin's proposal calls for 35 GW of new carbon-free energy generation by 2035, more than double the state's current capacity, according to Finance & Commerce.

The proposal also seeks to roll back policies restricting workers' rights enacted over the past years, Finance & Commerce reported.

Wisconsin's electricity demand is projected to rise about 40% by 2032, driven partly by AI data centers, electrification and electric vehicles, according to Finance & Commerce.

Global investment in data centers, led by AI infrastructure, surpassed oil and gas industry investment for the first time in 2025, according to Informa Connect.

The top 10 cloud service providers raised their capacity plans by about USD 137 billion, Informa Connect reported. That increase fed a USD 145 billion upward revision in Omdia's 2026 global data center investment forecast.

Across the GCC, 28 of 99 renewable projects under development had reached final investment decision (FID), according to Utilities Middle East. By comparison, two of 39 hydrogen projects and two of 18 carbon capture projects had reached FID.

None of the clean fuels, nuclear new-build, offshore wind or advanced modular reactor and small modular reactor (AMR/SMR) projects listed in the EICDataStream table had reached FID, Utilities Middle East reported.