Subsea engineering orders reach an "unprecedented scale"

2013-10-09 09:00

Although global oil giants and investors are starting to adopt a cautious approach, the upward trend in subsea oil and gas development projects may continue to grow for the time being.

The current backlog of subsea equipment orders has reached an unprecedented scale, increasing by approximately 50% since 2011, and this growth trend is likely to continue in the coming years.

According to DNB Markets, there are currently approximately $207 billion worth of subsea engineering bidding projects globally across the Americas, Europe, Africa, and other regions, all estimated to be awarded contracts before next year.

Petrobras in Brazil is currently undertaking subsea bidding projects totaling $5.5 billion (5 projects). In addition, Total ($4.4 billion, 2 projects), Shell ($3 billion, 3 projects), and Statoil ($1.5 billion, 3 projects) are also involved in related bidding projects.

In particular, the "Big Three" companies—Subsea 7, Technip, and Saipem—are expected to see an approximately 11% increase in sales in the subsea umbilical, risers, and flowlines (SURF) sector next year.

The combined subsea engineering backlog for these three companies totaled $33.9 billion (at the end of Q2 2013), representing a 30% year-on-year increase and a 50% increase compared to the end of 2011.

Furthermore, while there has been a recent slowdown in investor sentiment in the subsea market, DNB indicates that the subsea market will continue to show above-average growth year after year in the coming years, remaining on an upward trajectory.