Why is Popularity of Artificial Lifting Surging in North America?
The surging number of mature oil & gas fields is one of the major factors responsible for the growing worldwide demand for artificial lift. According to reports, mature oil fields that are over 30 years old account for more than 70% of the total oil produced globally. Moreover, the reservoir pressure of these oil fields declines rapidly over a period of time. Because of this reason, oil exploration and production (E&P) companies are adopting artificial lifting methods in mature wells.
Besides the aforementioned factor, the discovery of recovery shale gas in several parts around the world is also creating lucrative growth opportunities for the companies operating in the artificial lift industry. Artificial lifting strategies are used in various horizontal shale gas-producing wells for lifting accumulated fluids in the well and assisting in sustaining the excellent performance of the wells. The rising number of ultradeep and deepwater activities around the world are also fueling the global demand for artificial lift.
Due to the above-mentioned factors, the global artificial lift market is exhibiting huge expansion. Electrical submersible pumps (ESP), rod lifts, progressive cavity pumps (PCPs), and gas lifts are the major types of artificial lifting methods used across the world. Out of these, the demand for ESPs was found to be the highest in the world during the last few years. This was because of the high oil extraction volumes and sustained performance of these devices.
Pump-assisted and gas-assisted are the main two types of mechanisms used in artificial lift. Between these, the demand for the pump-assisted artificial lift is predicted to rise rapidly across the world in the coming years. This is credited to the ability of these pumps to augment the tube string’s bottom-hole pressure for lifting huge amounts of fluids and bringing them to the surface. The major application areas of artificial lifting methods are offshore and onshore.
Between these, the requirement for artificial lift was found to be higher in onshore applications in the past. This was because of the existence of several mature wells in the onshore oil fields all over the world, as per the observations of P&S Intelligence, a market research company based in India. Moreover, as onshore oil drilling is highly cost-effective as compared to offshore drilling, it is widely preferred by various exploration and production companies across the world.
Geographically, the demand for artificial lift was observed to be the highest in North America during the last few years and this trend is predicted to continue in the coming years as well. This is credited to the existence of several artificial lifting services providing companies in the region. Furthermore, over 90% of the oil wells in the U.S. need artificial lift, on account of the rapid fall in their natural pressure.
Hence, it can be said with full surety that the demand for artificial lift will soar all over the world in the coming years, primarily because of the increasing number of mature oil wells and the falling natural pressure of oil wells across the world.