SUPPORTING PRODUCERS COULD PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES IN AFRICA

摘要

Douglas-Westwood 's recently published World Floating Production Market Forecast for 2015-2019 estimates that capital expenditure on floating production storage units will be in the order of US$81 billion, up 73 per cent compared to the period 2010-2014. Capital expenditure for production will focus on the 'golden triangle' of Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico and West Africa. Of that, Africa will form 22 per cent of global investment. With cuts in exploration contracts being announced daily, key production projects in Africa still have the go ahead - Total, Chevron, Exxon and Eni have all committed to major deepwater projects in the region in the next few years. With so much activity expected, the vessel market offshore Africa could benefit, although it is important to highlight some of the key factors to bear in mind when sourcing tonnage at different stages in the life of a floating production, storage and offloading(FPSOunit. Douglas-Westwood forecasts that, between 2015 and 2017, the annual value of installations in West Africa is set to grow from US$12 billion to US$21 billion. For installation and hook-up work not handled by a contractor's own vessels, the cost is dependent on the time of year that the project will take place.