Alberta launches $35-million challenge to reinvent drilling for the next 50 years   By  Robert Buluma | December 3, 2025   EDMONTON – The days of drilling straight down and hoping for the best are long gone. Today, operators in Western Canada routinely steer multi-kilometre horizontal wells with pinpoint accuracy from a single surface location. Tomorrow’s wells, however, could be guided entirely by artificial intelligence, powered by low-emission rigs, and used to unlock everything from geothermal heat to critical minerals and permanent CO₂ storage. That future just got a $35-million boost. Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA ) officially opened applications this week for the Drilling Technology Challenge, a funding program designed to bridge the “valley of death” that too often kills promising subsurface innovations before they ever reach the field. “Many great ideas never make it past the prototype stage because the cost and risk of real-world testing are simply...

Alphaxioms Calls for a Bold Partnership with Saudi Aramco: Geothermal, Hydrogen, andCCUS for Saudi Arabia’s Energy Future By:  Robert Buluma Saudi Arabia stands at a historic crossroads. With Vision 2030 charting the Kingdom’s transition from oil dependency to a diversified, sustainable economy, the world is watching how energy giants like Saudi Aramco will redefine their role in the global transition. The stakes are high, and the opportunities are even higher. At Alphaxioms, we believe Saudi Arabia has an unprecedented chance to lead the next wave of clean energy innovation—not just in the Middle East, but worldwide. The time has come to tap into solutions that go beyond incremental change. The Energy Challenge The global community is racing toward net-zero emissions, with 2050 as the defining milestone. Nations and corporations alike are under pressure to deliver scalable, low-carbon solutions that maintain energy security while reducing emissions. For Saudi Arabia, this means ha...