APRIL 10, 2026
Interview
KazService Introduction:
Good afternoon! Today we're talking about the digital transformation of Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry. Our guest is Ilya Shilin, a representative of Octave, formerly a division of Hexagon. Ilya, thank you for joining us.
Ilya Shilin:
Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here. This is a truly interesting topic, and I'm happy to share our experience and observations.
Good afternoon! Today we're talking about the digital transformation of Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry. Our guest is Ilya Shilin, a representative of Octave, formerly a division of Hexagon. Ilya, thank you for joining us.
Ilya Shilin:
Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here. This is a truly interesting topic, and I'm happy to share our experience and observations.
KazService:
Let's start with a recent piece of news. On March 2, you announced the launch of Octave as a separate company. What does this mean in practice?
Ilya Shilin:
Yes, this is an important step for us. Essentially, we are spinning off from Hexagon and becoming a separate company under the Octave brand. Our goal is to help clients solve complex problems more easily and quickly through digital technologies.
The process of spinning off from Hexagon is planned to be completed by mid-2026. Product names, appearance, and communications may change in the coming months.
But the important thing is: the team remains the same, the solutions remain the same, and the technologies are not disappearing. For clients, this is more of an evolution than a drastic change.
Digital Maturity
KazService:
Generally speaking, what is the current level of digitalization in the oil and gas industry in Kazakhstan?
Ilya Shilin:
In short, the industry has made significant progress.
Large companies are actively investing in digitalization: they are streamlining engineering data, strengthening process discipline, and paying more attention to reliability and safety.
To highlight the main points:
Digital Twins
KazService:
There's a lot of talk about digital twins these days. Is this a reality or just a theory?
Ilya Shilin:
It's already a reality, and for large companies, it's practically standard.
Because complex facilities like Tengiz and Kashagan—they're simply impossible to operate effectively without accurate data.
Plus, safety requirements are growing, documentation must be up-to-date, and everyone needs analytics ahead of time, not just after the fact.
A digital twin brings all of this together—data, processes, and analytics.
AI and Digital Twins
KazService:
Where does artificial intelligence fit in here?
Ilya Shilin:
AI is the next level.
It allows you to not just store data, but actually extract value from it:
But the important point is that AI only works well when there's high-quality data. And here, a digital twin is the foundation.
Octave Solutions
KazService:
Which of your solutions are currently most in demand in Kazakhstan?
Ilya Shilin:
Briefly, three main areas.
The first is engineering data.
When a company has a single location where all relevant information about a facility is stored, it's incredibly valuable.
The second is operational processes.
This is everything related to safety and daily operations: work permits, shifts, incidents, and so on.
The third is automation and system control.
When you see what's happening with equipment in real time and can manage it.
And separately, solutions for construction and commissioning of facilities. There's also great demand for these. KazService
Projects :
Can you provide some project examples?
Ilya Shilin:
Unfortunately, we can't name specific companies due to confidentiality requirements.
But generally speaking, the projects' objectives and results are very similar.
First and foremost, companies gain a more transparent picture of their assets—they have a single, actionable data source.
This improves operational efficiency: decisions are made faster, and less time is spent searching for and verifying information.
Risk reduction is also worth noting, primarily due to better process control and a higher level of industrial safety.
Overall, transparency increases: it becomes clear what's happening at the facility, where bottlenecks exist, and where processes can be improved.
We're currently working on publishing some of these cases—I think we'll be able to cover this in more detail soon.
KazService:
What's the biggest obstacle to digitalization today?
Ilya Shilin:
To summarize, there are three classic problems—and they're found almost everywhere.
First, there's disparate data.
In many companies, information is stored in different systems, often unconnected. Some contain engineering data, others operational data, and still others equipment data. As a result, there's no unified picture, and people waste a lot of time simply searching for and verifying information.
Secondly, there's a lack of uniform standards and processes.
Even within a single company, different departments can work differently. There are no uniform rules for data management, change processing, or process management. This greatly complicates the implementation of digital solutions, because the processes themselves must first be brought into order.
Third, of course, is the human factor.
Any change, especially in large industrial companies, is perceived with caution. People get used to working according to a certain pattern, and switching to new tools or approaches requires time, training, and, most importantly, trust.
But there are several other points that are also important to mention.
For example, the volume of data preparation is often underestimated.
Digital solutions only work well when the data is high-quality. And this means it needs to be cleaned, structured, and updated. This is a separate, major undertaking that cannot be simply skipped.
Another challenge is integration.
New systems must not simply be implemented, but carefully integrated into the company's existing IT landscape, which is typically complex and historically shaped.
Finally, management support is an important factor.
Without a clear understanding at the management level of why digitalization is needed and what business results it should deliver, projects often lose focus or slow down.
In general, digital transformation isn't about "installing a new system."
It's about changing the way a company works: how it manages data, processes, and decisions.
And the most powerful results are achieved precisely where technology, processes, and people can be combined.
The Future
of KazService:
And finally, how do you see the future of the industry?
Ilya Shilin:
The future lies in a unified digital platform built around a digital twin.
When all elements work together—data, processes, security, maintenance, and automation—as a single system, not in isolation.
The next step is the transition to predictive management, where decisions are made proactively based on data, not after the fact.
At the same time, the role of AI will increasingly grow—it will become part of everyday work, helping to analyze data and mitigate risks.
Let's start with a recent piece of news. On March 2, you announced the launch of Octave as a separate company. What does this mean in practice?
Ilya Shilin:
Yes, this is an important step for us. Essentially, we are spinning off from Hexagon and becoming a separate company under the Octave brand. Our goal is to help clients solve complex problems more easily and quickly through digital technologies.
The process of spinning off from Hexagon is planned to be completed by mid-2026. Product names, appearance, and communications may change in the coming months.
But the important thing is: the team remains the same, the solutions remain the same, and the technologies are not disappearing. For clients, this is more of an evolution than a drastic change.
Digital Maturity
KazService:
Generally speaking, what is the current level of digitalization in the oil and gas industry in Kazakhstan?
Ilya Shilin:
In short, the industry has made significant progress.
Large companies are actively investing in digitalization: they are streamlining engineering data, strengthening process discipline, and paying more attention to reliability and safety.
To highlight the main points:
- are moving away from disparate systems towards a unified digital environment
- implement processes such as work permits and change management
- are seriously developing industrial safety
- are moving towards integrated digital ecosystems
Digital Twins
KazService:
There's a lot of talk about digital twins these days. Is this a reality or just a theory?
Ilya Shilin:
It's already a reality, and for large companies, it's practically standard.
Because complex facilities like Tengiz and Kashagan—they're simply impossible to operate effectively without accurate data.
Plus, safety requirements are growing, documentation must be up-to-date, and everyone needs analytics ahead of time, not just after the fact.
A digital twin brings all of this together—data, processes, and analytics.
AI and Digital Twins
KazService:
Where does artificial intelligence fit in here?
Ilya Shilin:
AI is the next level.
It allows you to not just store data, but actually extract value from it:
- find deviations
- predict breakdowns
- see what a person might not notice
But the important point is that AI only works well when there's high-quality data. And here, a digital twin is the foundation.
Octave Solutions
KazService:
Which of your solutions are currently most in demand in Kazakhstan?
Ilya Shilin:
Briefly, three main areas.
The first is engineering data.
When a company has a single location where all relevant information about a facility is stored, it's incredibly valuable.
The second is operational processes.
This is everything related to safety and daily operations: work permits, shifts, incidents, and so on.
The third is automation and system control.
When you see what's happening with equipment in real time and can manage it.
And separately, solutions for construction and commissioning of facilities. There's also great demand for these. KazService
Projects :
Can you provide some project examples?
Ilya Shilin:
Unfortunately, we can't name specific companies due to confidentiality requirements.
But generally speaking, the projects' objectives and results are very similar.
First and foremost, companies gain a more transparent picture of their assets—they have a single, actionable data source.
This improves operational efficiency: decisions are made faster, and less time is spent searching for and verifying information.
Risk reduction is also worth noting, primarily due to better process control and a higher level of industrial safety.
Overall, transparency increases: it becomes clear what's happening at the facility, where bottlenecks exist, and where processes can be improved.
We're currently working on publishing some of these cases—I think we'll be able to cover this in more detail soon.
KazService:
What's the biggest obstacle to digitalization today?
Ilya Shilin:
To summarize, there are three classic problems—and they're found almost everywhere.
First, there's disparate data.
In many companies, information is stored in different systems, often unconnected. Some contain engineering data, others operational data, and still others equipment data. As a result, there's no unified picture, and people waste a lot of time simply searching for and verifying information.
Secondly, there's a lack of uniform standards and processes.
Even within a single company, different departments can work differently. There are no uniform rules for data management, change processing, or process management. This greatly complicates the implementation of digital solutions, because the processes themselves must first be brought into order.
Third, of course, is the human factor.
Any change, especially in large industrial companies, is perceived with caution. People get used to working according to a certain pattern, and switching to new tools or approaches requires time, training, and, most importantly, trust.
But there are several other points that are also important to mention.
For example, the volume of data preparation is often underestimated.
Digital solutions only work well when the data is high-quality. And this means it needs to be cleaned, structured, and updated. This is a separate, major undertaking that cannot be simply skipped.
Another challenge is integration.
New systems must not simply be implemented, but carefully integrated into the company's existing IT landscape, which is typically complex and historically shaped.
Finally, management support is an important factor.
Without a clear understanding at the management level of why digitalization is needed and what business results it should deliver, projects often lose focus or slow down.
In general, digital transformation isn't about "installing a new system."
It's about changing the way a company works: how it manages data, processes, and decisions.
And the most powerful results are achieved precisely where technology, processes, and people can be combined.
The Future
of KazService:
And finally, how do you see the future of the industry?
Ilya Shilin:
The future lies in a unified digital platform built around a digital twin.
When all elements work together—data, processes, security, maintenance, and automation—as a single system, not in isolation.
The next step is the transition to predictive management, where decisions are made proactively based on data, not after the fact.
At the same time, the role of AI will increasingly grow—it will become part of everyday work, helping to analyze data and mitigate risks.
- Kazakhstan is already moving in this direction, and the coming years will be crucial—the foundation for the next stage of digitalization is currently being laid.