March 25 (Reuters) - Oilfield services company SLB said on Wednesday it would expand its partnership with Nvidia to develop artificial intelligence infrastructure and models for the energy industry, as companies look to scale up use of the technology.
The deal builds on the two companies' partnership, which began in 2008 when SLB used Nvidia's accelerated computing and then expanded in 2024 to development of generative AI solutions for the energy sector.
It also reflects the energy industry's need to process growing volumes of geological, production and infrastructure data more quickly, at a time when producers are seeking to cut costs, improve reliability and lower emissions.
Oilfield contractors such as SLB are also keen to drive growth by delivering power equipment, turbines and data solutions to data centers and related AI infrastructure work, at a time when drilling demand is slowing.
Under the expanded partnership, SLB will act as a design partner for modular AI data centers based on Nvidia technology and work with the U.S. chip firm to create an "AI Factory for Energy". The platform aims to help oil and gas producers and power companies apply AI to large volumes of operational data.
"Building AI Factory infrastructure and domain models is needed to turn massive amounts of energy data into actionable insights and accelerate more efficient and sustainable energy systems," said Vladimir Troy, vice president of AI Infrastructure at Nvidia.
(Reporting by Sumit Saha in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)
