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In an industry as capital-intensive and complex as energy, you might not expect the finance team to be the ones sparking innovation. But behind the scenes—buried in spreadsheets, scenario models, and cost curves—finance and FP&A teams have often been the quiet force behind some of the sector’s biggest pivots.
That’s especially true in oil & gas, where volatility is the norm, and energy companies are constantly balancing between profitability, compliance, sustainability, and geopolitical pressures. It turns out that the people modeling costs, forecasting market scenarios, and analyzing investments are also in the best position to rethink the business entirely.
Take Shell, for example. As one of the largest players in the industry, Shell’s finance function was instrumental in its decision to pivot toward renewable energy and hydrogen. While sustainability targets made headlines, it was the finance team’s ability to model long-term returns on low-carbon investments—and compare them with traditional upstream oil projects—that helped shift the internal narrative. Finance didn’t just run the numbers—they showed that renewables weren’t a cost center, but a growth opportunity.
A similar story unfolded at Ørsted, the Danish energy company formerly known as DONG Energy (Danish Oil and Natural Gas). The company made headlines for its dramatic pivot from fossil fuels to wind energy, becoming one of the world’s leading offshore wind developers. While this transformation is often described as visionary leadership, Ørsted’s finance team played a foundational role. They built the multi-year financial models that proved the viability of renewables at scale—before the rest of the industry believed it was possible. Those models gave decision-makers the confidence to take bold action, knowing that clean energy wasn’t just environmentally smart—it was financially sound.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., companies like ExxonMobil and Chevron have used advanced financial modeling to optimize capital allocation during downturns, but they’ve also begun using their FP&A capabilities to explore new revenue streams beyond hydrocarbons. From carbon capture and storage (CCS) to hydrogen hubs, finance teams are analyzing the cost curves and potential long-term margins on emerging technologies that weren’t even on the radar a decade ago.
It’s not just the energy giants, either. Independent oil producers and midstream companies are increasingly using FP&A insights to rethink their approach to emissions tracking, energy trading, and portfolio diversification. In some cases, finance teams have helped shift entire investment strategies—identifying that hedging strategies once seen as protective might actually hinder long-term growth if not balanced with innovation capital.
One often-overlooked area where finance is making an impact is in energy storage and grid analytics. As more companies in the power and utilities sector look to stabilize renewable energy flows, FP&A teams are being asked to model the ROI of battery storage, microgrids, and demand response initiatives. These aren’t just academic exercises—they’re shaping how utilities invest billions in infrastructure that supports the energy transition.
At the heart of all these stories is one core truth: finance teams—especially those empowered with real-time data, cloud platforms like Microsoft Azure, and planning tools like Vena—are no longer just scorekeepers. They’re strategists. Innovators. Advisors. And in many cases, they’re the first to spot where the next opportunity lies.
As the energy sector continues to evolve, from decarbonization to digitization, finance teams that embrace a proactive, strategic mindset will be the ones to help their organizations lead—not just survive—the transition.
At RVNA Technologies, we help energy companies modernize their FP&A capabilities using the latest planning and analytics technologies from OneStream, Vena and Microsoft.
Let’s explore what your finance team could discover next.
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