A recent report into global subsea tree awards, published by Quest Offshore, forecasts 12.1 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the next five years. This compares with a CAGR of 3.6 percent experienced in the previous five year period.
Quest analysts state that growth prospects are sound for meaningful subsea orders during 2009/10, buoyed by notable projects offshore Brazil and Africa.
The report also acknowledges that awards maybe tempered in 2009 by the potential slow down of final investment decisions (FID) on certain world class projects.
West Africa is identified as a bright spot for future subsea activity, following on from ongoing projects by the major operators in the region. These projects face slight delays, as is the norm for most large West African developments: Total's Clov project off Angola is moving back and forth from a late 2009 award to a potential early 2010 award and ExxonMobil is actively working to bring the dual-phase Kizomba Satellite project through to execution.
Quest Offshore has also put forward a strong forecast for the Asia Pacific region over the next few years with Australia leading the demand.
"Despite an anticipated softening in the global subsea tree award forecast for 2009, Quest expects a quick return to record growth in the sector in 2010 spearheaded predominantly by Brazil, West Africa and Asia," said President of Quest Offshore, Paul Hillegeist.
