Equinor Ventures, Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures and Sumitomo Corporation Invests in Total 75 mNOK in Norwegian Artificial Intelligence Software Provider Earth Science Analytics
2.9.2020 09:30:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Earth Science Analytics AS, a Norwegian petroleum geoscience software provider, has raised a series B funding from Equinor Ventures, the corporate venture fund of Equinor, a broad energy company and the leading operator in Norway, Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures, the corporate venture subsidiary of Wintershall Dea, Europe’s leading independent gas and oil company and Sumitomo Corporation, one of the world’s largest general trading companies. The three new investors are joining Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, who first invested in the company in 2019.
Earth Science Analytics is spearheading the development of the next generation petroleum geoscience software based on artificial intelligence, physics- and data-driven approaches. Earth Science Analytics’ proprietary software package EarthNET, is a modern cloud-native application that allows faster, cheaper and more accurate prediction of rock and fluid properties in the subsurface. This leads to greater profitability and higher success rates for oil and gas exploration, development and production.
The funds will allow Earth Science Analytics to continue developing its unmatched cloud based geoscience software to the next level as well as expand its presence across the world.
Lisa Rebora, Senior Vice President in Equinor Exploration, commented “Digitalisation is impacting how we work, making it easier to analyse and be creative with data, improving how we collaborate and enhancing our understanding of the subsurface. We are always seeking to learn and improve, looking externally for those partners and innovators who can help us release the value of our data and the knowledge of our people. The Earth Science Analytics cloud-native solutions will contribute to empower more people to access data-driven and cutting-edge technology, and help generate more opportunities and value with increasing efficiency.”
Andreas Berger, Managing Director of Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures, commented “Our industry will be led by companies who integrate digital technology into all areas of the business and foremost in their key processes in order to gain value. The solutions of Earth Science Analytics will enable us to make data-driven decisions faster and more precise with direct impact on our bottom line.”
Kenichi Hotta, GM of Sumitomo Corporation Global Energy Service Department, commented “We believe that Earth Science Analytics (ESA) brings more digital capability to the industry. Together with ESA, Sumitomo continuously contributes to ongoing digital transformation initiatives by supporting process automation, cost reduction and minimizing greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, initiatives such as our new ‘green’ subsurface businesses (including carbon capture and storage, geothermal development and underground energy storage) will greatly benefit from the use of ESA’s data-driven and cutting-edge technology.”
Kjell-Erik Østdahl, Chairman of Earth Science Analytics, commented “We are proud to welcome Equinor Ventures, Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures and Sumitomo Corporation as new institutional investors. Together we will continue to develop the technology to create a step change in geoscience interpretation using AI.”
About Equinor Ventures
Equinor Ventures is Equinor’s corporate venture fund dedicated to investing in attractive and ambitious early phase and growth companies. We believe that the innovation, creativity and agility of start-ups can drive change and transition the energy industry towards a low carbon future.
About Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures GmBH
Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures GmbH (WDTV) is the venture capital arm of Wintershall Dea, Europe’s leading independent gas and oil company. WDTV is responsible for integrating innovative concepts and technologies to the core businesses of the company. The aim of WDTV is to make investments into digital solutions and relevant break-through technologies and business innovations along the value-chain of our industry. The focus of investment is on cost reduction, increased recovery of hydrocarbons, reduction of environmental footprint or reduction of subsurface uncertainty.
About Sumitomo Corporation
Sumitomo Corporation (SC) is a leading Fortune 500 global trading and business investment company with 136 locations (Japan: 22, Overseas: 114) in 66 countries and regions. The entire SC Group consists of more than 900 companies. SC conducts commodity transactions in all industries utilizing worldwide networks, provides related customers with various financing, serves as an organizer and a coordinator for various projects, and invests in companies to promote greater growth potential. SC’s core business areas include Metal Products, Transportation and Construction Systems, Infrastructure, Media and Digital, Living Related and Real Estate, Mineral Resources, Energy, and Chemical and Electronics.
About Earth Science Analytics AS
Earth Science Analytics AS (ESA) is a Norwegian technology company developing the next generation web-based cloud-native geoscience software and solutions. ESA incorporates extensive knowledge and experience in geoscience, computer science, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, to develop software and solutions for the energy industry. The software products provide geoscientists with opportunities to work with large data sets more efficiently and obtain more accurate results at a lower cost compared to what can be achieved with traditional methods.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200901006003/en/
Contact information
Equinor Ventures
Fredrik Jebsen Bråten, Communications Manager
Phone: +47 984 02 255
Email: fjbr@equinor.com
www.equinor.com
Wintershall Dea Technology Ventures GmbH
Dr. Andreas Berger, Managing Director
Phone: +49 561 301-0
Email: Andreas.Berger@wintershalldea.com
www.wintershalldea.ventures
Sumitomo Corporation
Kenichi Hotta, GM of Sumitomo Corporation Global Energy Service Department
Phone: +47 948 50 125
Email: kenichi.hotta@sumitomocorp.com
www.sumitomocorp.com
Earth Science Analytics AS
Kjell-Erik Østdahl, Chairman
Phone: +47 928 72 213
Email: contact@earthanalytics.no
www.earthanalytics.ai
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Santander Financial Crime Transformation Leader Joins ThetaRay to Drive Enterprise AI Adoption7.7.2026 11:00:00 EEST | Press release
ThetaRay, a leader in AI infrastructure for financial crime compliance, today announced the appointment of Luis Pinedo as Chief Strategic Customers Officer. Previously Pinedo was Group VP of Compliance at Santander Bank, where during his 16-year tenure, he led global Financial Crime Compliance (FCC) transformation initiatives across operating models, processes, and technology platforms. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260707359150/en/ Luis Pinedo joins ThetaRay as Chief Strategic Customers Officer. In his new role, Pinedo will bring key perspectives from tier-one banking operational challenges to ThetaRay’s product development and design. He will lead strategic customer engagement as well as product strategy across ThetaRay’s entire compliance platform, including Transaction Monitoring, Screening, Customer Risk Assessment, and Agentic Investigations. The appointment comes at a critical time in the RegTech indu
Robbyant Unveils LingBot-Depth 2.0 and LingBot-Vision to Redefine Robotic Spatial Perception7.7.2026 10:54:00 EEST | Press release
Robbyant, an embodied AI company within Ant Group, today announced the launch of LingBot-Depth 2.0, a next-generation spatial perception model, alongside its foundational visual model, LingBot-Vision. This release marks a significant leap in robotic spatial perception, empowering robots to accurately understand and navigate the physical world. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260706806935/en/ LingBot-Depth 2.0 reconstructs complete and planar 3D structures in challenging scenarios involving mirrors and glass From "Seeing" to "Seeing Accurately" Building upon the success of LingBot-Depth, which pioneered the Masked Depth Modeling (MDM) technique to resolve depth sensing challenges for transparent and reflective surfaces, LingBot-Depth 2.0 represents a massive scale-up in training data and performance. Trained on 150 million samples, the new model achieves top rankings in 12 out of 16 depth completion benchmarks.
RGI Group Strengthens Its Personal Insurance Capabilities in France Through KAPIA-RGI’s Acquisition of Cegid Assurex Solutions7.7.2026 10:30:00 EEST | Press release
RGI, a leading European provider of digital insurance platforms, announces that KAPIA-RGI, its France-based company specialised in personal insurance solutions, has acquired Cegid Assurex solutions. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260707323665/en/ This transaction marks a major milestone in the Group's development strategy in French speaking markets in Europe and further enhances its ability to support insurers, mutual insurers, provident institutions, brokers and bancassurers in their innovation and digital transformation initiatives. By integrating Cegid Assurex's expertise, talent and solutions, KAPIA-RGI consolidates its position as the reference leader in the Life Insurance, Savings, Retirement, Annuities and Provident markets. This acquisition expands its client base with more than 20 additional customers while accelerating innovation and growth in a market shaped by evolving regulation, automation and a
Bitcoin Suisse Advances Middle East Expansion, Receiving Financial Services Permission in Abu Dhabi7.7.2026 10:15:00 EEST | Press release
Building on its position as Switzerland’s leading crypto financial services provider, Bitcoin Suisse is further accelerating its international expansion. Bitcoin Suisse Group’s subsidiary, BTCS (Middle East) Ltd. (“BTCS ME”) has received Financial Services Permission (FSP) from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM, the international financial centre of Abu Dhabi, marking another significant step toward the Group’s international growth strategy becoming a leading global wealth management partner. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260707864200/en/ Ceyda Majcen, Chief Executive Officer and SEO of BTCS ME, leads Bitcoin Suisse Group's expansion in the Middle East and brings extensive, long-standing senior leadership experience across the Group. The FSP marks the completion of a thorough, multi-stage licensing process and enables BTCS ME to deliver a comprehensive suite of regulated digital asse
Alpaca Completes EEA Passporting to 29 Countries, Expanding Access to Regulated Investment Services Across Europe7.7.2026 10:00:00 EEST | Press release
Alpaca, a global leader in brokerage infrastructure APIs, today announced that it has completed the process to passport its regulated and localized investment services across 29 countries in the EEA (European Economic Area) through its Spain-based EEA hub. The completion of EEA passporting enables Alpaca to extend the regulatory foundation established through its European entity, which is authorized and registered with Spain’s Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV), across the EEA under the MiFID II framework. Together with Alpaca’s regulated UK entity, this milestone strengthens Alpaca’s ability to support fintechs, financial institutions, and enterprise partners building regulated investment products across Europe, reaching a market of nearly 500 million people. The passported countries include Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom