AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 51-8092.00
Will AI replace Gas Plant Operators?
Gas Plant Operators: AI can already handle 4 of 19 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a standard-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 19 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Gas Plant Operators, from most to least exposed. 4 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Record, review, and compile operations records, test results, and gauge readings such as temperatures, pressures, concentrations, and flows. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Calculate gas ratios to detect deviations from specifications, using testing apparatus. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Test gas, chemicals, and air during processing to assess factors such as purity and moisture content, and to detect quality problems or gas or chemical leaks. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Determine causes of abnormal pressure variances, and make corrective recommendations, such as installation of pipes to relieve overloading. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Distribute or process gas for utility companies or industrial plants, using panel boards, control boards, and semi-automatic equipment. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Start and shut down plant equipment. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Clean, maintain, and repair equipment, using hand tools, or request that repair and maintenance work be performed. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Operate construction equipment to install and maintain gas distribution systems. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Monitor equipment functioning, observe temperature, level, and flow gauges, and perform regular unit checks to ensure that all equipment is operating as it should. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Control operation of compressors, scrubbers, evaporators, and refrigeration equipment to liquefy, compress, or regasify natural gas. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Collaborate with other operators to solve unit problems. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Monitor transportation and storage of flammable and other potentially dangerous products to ensure that safety guidelines are followed. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Read logsheets to determine product demand and disposition, or to detect malfunctions. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Control fractioning columns, compressors, purifying towers, heat exchangers, and related equipment to extract nitrogen and oxygen from air. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Contact maintenance crews when necessary. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Signal or direct workers who tend auxiliary equipment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Change charts in recording meters. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Control equipment to regulate flow and pressure of gas to feedlines of boilers, furnaces, and related steam-generating or heating equipment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Adjust temperature, pressure, vacuum, level, flow rate, or transfer of gas to maintain processes at required levels or to correct problems. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 19 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 19 of 19. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A standard-tier model or lower covers 36% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 42% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 58% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 18,030
- Median annual wage
- $87,820
- Middle half of earners
- $76,870 to $100,870
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- -8.8%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators 84% skill overlap, about 6 months to move Exposure15
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers 75% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure35
- Power Plant Operators 73% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure25
- Chemical Plant and System Operators 71% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure26
- Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators 67% skill overlap, about 12 months to move Exposure24
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Gas Plant Operators and AI
Will AI replace Gas Plant Operators?
AI already handles 4 of the 19 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 31 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by -8.8% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Gas Plant Operators?
31 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 0 of the 19 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 19 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Gas Plant Operators tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Record, review, and compile operations records, test results, and gauge readings such as temperatures, pressures, concentrations, and flows; Calculate gas ratios to detect deviations from specifications, using testing apparatus; Test gas, chemicals, and air during processing to assess factors such as purity and moisture content, and to detect quality problems or gas or chemical leaks. They are three of the 4 tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A standard-tier model or lower covers 36% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 58% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Gas Plant Operators, and what do they earn?
18,030 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $87,820 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -8.8% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Gas Plant Operators. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/gas-plant-operators
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