Gulf of Mexico Oil Production Projected to Reach Record High

EIA notes that production in the Gulf is less sensitive than onshore production in the Lower 48 states to short-term price movements. However, decreased profit margins and reduced expectations for a quick oil price recovery have prompted many operators to pull back on future deep-water exploration spending, reduce their active rig fleet by scrapping and stacking older rigs, and restructure or delay drilling rig contracts. These changes added uncertainty to the timelines of many Gulf projects, with those in the early stages of development at greatest risk of delay or cancellation.

Contributing to the forecast production growth in the Gulf of Mexico are 14 projects, eight that started in 2015, four starting in 2016, and two anticipated to begin in 2017. During 2015, eight fields came online. With the exception of Anadarko’s Lucius field, each was developed as a subsea well tied back to nearby existing production facilities. The use of subsea tiebacks allows producers to reduce both project costs and startup times. The Lucius field produces oil using a type of floating production platform that supports drilling, production, and storage operations known as a truss spar. The Lucius spar is the largest in Anadarko’s fleet. It consists of a large, hollow, weighted cylinder supporting a deck and is connected to an anchor on the seabed through a mooring system. Its design provides increased stability in harsh offshore conditions.

Four fields are expected to start producing in 2016, including the Anadarko-operated Heidelberg field, which began producing in January. Heidelberg is producing at a spar that uses the same design as the Lucius truss spar, allowing the company to reduce development costs. Shell’s Stones field development uses the first floating production, storage, and offload (FPSO) vessel in the Gulf. FPSOs allow the development of fields that are complex, that have unique reservoir properties, and that do not have existing infrastructure. Crude oil produced from the Stones field will be transported from the FPSO by tankers that will carry crude to refineries along the Gulf Coast. The other two fields expected to begin producing in 2016—Gunflint and Holstein Deep—are subsea tiebacks. Two additional projects are to begin producing in 2017, and both are expected to be developed as subsea tiebacks.