E&P Data Residency and Utilizing IaaS

Abstract Cloud adoption in the oil and gas industry has accelerated, driven by the need for agility, scalability, and performance. However, with this transformation comes the critical challenge of data residency and sovereignty. This paper explores the nuances of data residency from the Exploration & Production (E&P) domain perspective, highlights differences between traditional on-prem solutions and cloud-based infrastructure models, and deep dives into Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) architecture. The paper discusses industry considerations, regulatory compliance, infrastructure planning, uptime requirements, and data protection strategies, including cloud audits. Using real-world scenarios and architectural illustrations, this work outlines how IaaS can be configured to meet performance and residency requirements of E&P companies, without compromising security or compliance.