The deepwater sector is forecast to continue its growth trend and will remain strong over the next five years, reaching an annual total of over $20 billion by 2010. These are the headline findings of the new World Deepwater Market Forecast, the latest in the acclaimed series from top offshore analysts Douglas-Westwood, launched by Managing Director John Westwood at the recent Vitoria’s Deep Offshore Technology (DOT) conference in Brazil.

“Between now and 2010, expenditure in the deepwater sector is projected to expand at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.3%, with particularly strong growth coming from the Asia and Latin America regions. The ‘Golden Triangle’ of deepwater, namely the Africa, Gulf of Mexico and Brazilian areas, will still account for 85% of global deepwater expenditure over the forecast period but the rapid emergence of Asia as a significant deepwater region should not be overlooked”, commented Steve Robertson, Oil & Gas Research Manager at Douglas-Westwood and lead author of the new study.

“After the drilling & completion of subsea wells, an activity that is becoming increasingly expensive in areas such as the US GoM, it is floating platforms that form the main component of deepwater development expenditure. Advances in technology, particularly in mooring systems and innovative hull designs, are allowing production from greater water depths to be viable on both a technical and economic basis. “

The World Deepwater Market Forecast uses information from OGPOD (Oil & Gas Opportunities Database), an information system developed and maintained by Douglas-Westwood. According to database manager and marine analyst Georgie MacFarlan, “Over the next five years some $28 billion is likely to be spent on deepwater floating production systems, $36 billion on drilling and completing subsea wells and $14 billion on flowlines and control lines, while subsea hardware and surface completed wells could account for a further $10 billion.”