How Chevron's Robotics Push Is Redefining Field Efficiency

Chevron Corporation CVX is quickly adopting robotics to transform its operations, making the workplace safer and more efficient by removing people from high-risk tasks. Over the past two and a half years, the American supermajor has steadily introduced robotic systems into field jobs, ranging from cleaning storage tanks to inspecting facilities from the air.

This change is part of Chevron's strategy to build smarter energy infrastructure, where technology reduces the physical demands on workers and automates jobs that once required long hours of on-site manual labor. Notably, the company's leaders stress that this isn't just a technological upgrade — it's primarily a safety strategy that helps teams avoid dangerous areas and cramped spaces.

One of the most powerful examples is in Chevron’s large storage tanks. Instead of sending workers inside tanks for inspections or cleaning, the company now uses specialized robotic tools to do the work remotely. This switch has created major benefits: since 2024, tank inspection robots have saved over $25 million and about 43,000 working hours, while robotic cleaning systems have added another $6 million in savings and eliminated 28,000 working hours. These efficiency gains allow field teams to focus their time on more critical, high-value work, which reduces facility downtime and improves overall reliability.

Chevron is also increasingly using drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) for tasks like visual checks, spotting heat leaks (thermal inspections), and detecting emissions. They are also moving toward autonomous "drone-in-a-box" monitoring systems, designed to greatly reduce the need for workers to physically visit sites. When these drones are combined with remotely operated vehicles used throughout their facilities, the company’s automation efforts have eliminated over 143,000 hours of at-risk work and generated more than $92 million in total savings since 2024. These technologies clearly show how robotics is now essential to making Chevron's daily operations safer, more efficient and fully modernized.

Peer Moves

Europe’s largest oil company, Shell SHEL, is expanding its robotics capabilities across operations to make inspection and maintenance safer, faster and more consistent. Shell uses robots on land, underwater, and in the air to reduce human exposure and streamline data collection. Shell’s methane-sniffing units, mobile inspection systems like Sensabot and ExR-1, and autonomous underwater vehicles all work as roaming sensors that spot leaks, assess equipment, and gather high-frequency imagery. These tools help Shell cut emissions, improve reliability and modernize its day-to-day operations.

Meanwhile, French behemoth TotalEnergies TTE is pushing ahead with robotics to simplify site operations and lower on-site risk, positioning robotics as a central part of its future platforms. TotalEnergies’ ARGOS program introduced autonomous inspection robots capable of detecting gas leaks, monitoring temperatures, and capturing 3D data across complex facilities. TotalEnergies tested these robots from the Shetlands to the North Sea and Angola, confirming remote oversight and multi-robot coordination. With new operator-robots now able to manipulate equipment, TotalEnergies is building toward fully integrated robotic ecosystems across its global assets.

The Zacks Rundown on Chevron

Shares of Chevron have gained around 10% in the past six months, essentially in line with the Oil/Energy sector.

From a valuation perspective — in terms of forward price-to-earnings ratio — Chevron is trading at a premium compared with the industry average. The stock is also trading above its five-year mean of 11.86.

See how the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Chevron’s earnings has been revised over the past 60 days.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research