Rotoliptic is rethinking one of the largest consumers of global electricity consumption, and an often overlooked source of GHG emissions—industrial pumping.

The industrial pumping industry accounts for roughly 20 per cent of global electricity consumption, and six per cent of global GHG emissions. The oil and gas sector is the single biggest market segment for pumps, at 17 per cent of the total pumping market, with artificial lift being a large contributor. Rotoliptic Technology is developing low cost, higher efficiency pumps into oil and gas applications.

Their proprietary new positive displacement rotary pump has the potential to significantly reduce energy consumption and associated operating costs, as well as reduce GHG emissions for oil and gas operators. It has the unique ability to deliver high flow rates and lift typically delivered by electric submersible pumps, but with the higher efficiency, lower capital costs, and simplicity of deployment.

“The Rotoliptic technology was born out of the clear need for environmental stewardship in vastly consequential industries,” said Stephanie Rose, VP Corporate for Rotoliptic. “By targeting the oil production market initially, we aimed to tackle one of the most energy-intensive sectors head-on. Our technology offers a fundamental shift in the way such consequential industries can operate more efficiently whilst significantly reducing their environmental footprint; the transformative efficiency gains that can be realized through the Rotoliptic technology signal a new era in the oil industry, where environmental responsibility and industrial efficiency are no longer at odds.”

Resolving the longstanding concern that sustainability and efficiency are diametrically opposed to one another was a primary goal for the Rotoliptic team, and finding a balanced and realistic approach to existing industries, particularly oil production, is a goal they’ve worked hard to achieve.

“It's an undeniable truth that oil production has significant environmental impacts that contribute to carbon emissions and environmental degradation,” said Rose. “The reality, however, is that oil remains a cornerstone of the global economy and an immediate, complete cessation of oil extraction is not feasible. This understanding shapes Rotoliptic's concern with regard to the climate crisis: oil production is an inevitable part of our current global framework, therefore our goal is to address this head-on and bridge the gap between ideal global energy sources, and reality.”

The original design of the Rotoliptic was developed and engineered by founder and CTO of Rotoliptic, Greg Montie, for transportation of fluids with a high flow rate, such as the pumping of water for fighting forest fires. 

The Rotoliptic patented helical geometry was then born from this initial idea, and has the potential to transport wide ranges of fluid conditions in challenging environments with higher flow, smaller footprint, and longer-lasting pumps. And their technology continues to develop. 

A 2023 Foresight 50 honouree, Rotoliptic is well underway developing additional solutions that will address durability issues and address pain points for a wider range of potential markets to include challenging applications. With these combined solutions, Rotoliptic will be able to not only address the pain points of a significant portion of the market, it will also be able to make a meaningful impact on the GHG emissions of the upstream oil and gas industry.

In the next five years, Rotoliptic is planning for strategic expansion and company growth, as the team experiences anticipated high volumes of commercial sales. The Rotoliptic team has set actionable goals to act as a roadmap as the company’s growth continues, including: 

• Conducting further field trials, with emphasis on longevity and lifetime impact assessments;
• Development of derivative technologies, including R&D work on several other Rotoliptic-held geometry patents;
• Global market expansion outside of North America, with emphasis on the Middle East, South America, and Europe; and
• Diversification into other industrial pumping market applications.

To learn more about Rotoliptic Technologies Inc. and the impact their team is having, visit them online at Rotoliptic.com, and check out their Foresight 50 profile.