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Worldwide spending by oil & gas companies on enterprise asset management (EAM) software is predicted to reach $297 million in 2010 as a result of the BP oil spill in the U.S.

"Prior to the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, IDC's forecast for worldwide spending by oil & gas companies on HSE software was predicted to top $131 million in 2010. The expected regulatory changes could potentially double the growth rate of spending on these applications during the next 2-3 years," said Rick Nicholson, vice president, Research, IDC Energy Insights.

EAM applications – systems used to manage physical assets such as rigs, plants, and pipelines – are expected to see an increased growth rate in spending due to new regulatory requirements.

The IDC Energy Insights study also predicts increased investments by oil & gas companies in advanced analytics software, especially predictive analytics and real-time or streaming analytics as well as investments in integration and process automation middleware in response to the application integration issues raised by the BP oil spill.

"Ultimately, the oil & gas industry must go beyond technology changes and invest in changes to its people and processes to achieve the standards of environmental protection and worker safety demanded by all stakeholders," notes Nicholson.

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