Offshore staff
LONDON – Offshore investments recovered to pre-pandemic levels last year, according to Westwood Global Energy Group.
Engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) spending totalled $41.7 billion, and this year’s total could surpass $70 billion helped by such as Saudi Aramco’s North Dome and QatarEnergy’s North Field developments in the Middle East; Petrobras’ Buzios offshore Brazil; BHP’s Perdido and ExxonMobil’s Yellowtail projects in Latin America; Equinor’s Wisting and Aker BP/Equinor’s NOAKA projects offshore Norway; and PetroVietnam’s Block B project in Southeast Asia.
Global rig contract fixtures, including exercised options, totalled 142 during 4Q 2021, with an associated 54,829 contracted rig days. This was 155% up on 3Q, where a total of 21,516 rig days were awarded.
Takeup of the global jackup fleet utilization rose steadily throughout the year, reaching 81% in 4Q, while global semi fixtures, which had recovered until the last few months of 2021, finished the year at 64% marketed utilization.
Engagement of the marketed drillship fleet was on average 75% in 4Q 2021, almost 10% up on the corresponding period for the previous year.
At the same time, Westwood senior rig analyst Alex Middleton expect more rigs to be withdrawn from service this year, after a low attrition rate in 2021 when only 33 rigs were removed from the fleet.
As for the impact of COVID, drilling demand in North America, South America (in particular) and the Middle East has stayed strong, he added, while in the North Sea, Africa and Southeast Asia, offshore drilling has continued its downward trajectory.
At present the North Sea and Southeast Asian rig markets appear to have returned to pre-pandemic levels in terms of rig demand.
Off South America, Westwood expects on average 37 rigs to be working this year with a contract backlog of 11,458 rig days already in place. Southeast Asia and Australia demand should continue to rise, with 13,125 days’ backlog in place and a substantial amount of rig contracts still to be awarded.
Southeast Asia is said to account for most outstanding jackup requirements worldwide.
01/28/2022
