Exploration in the GoM

Forty-nine ultra-deepwater field discoveries have been made in the last decade in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Clarksons Research. Offshore exploration and production in the GoM began back in the 1930s. By the end of 1975, a total of 444 shallow water-fields had been discovered in the area - 256 have been brought into production. Gas fields predominated, accounting for 75 percent of the discoveries. Compelled by the need to find new reserves, oil firms active in the GoM began pushing into deeper waters: The first deepwater discovery was in 1976. The average distance to shore of the 129 offshore discoveries in the area since 2007 was 145km, while 93 were in water depths of 500m or more. The focus has also shifted from gas to oil: 58 percent of the 129 finds were oil fields (93 deepwater finds). The GoM has been dubbed one corner of the “Golden Triangle” of deepwater E&P and has accounted for 16 percent and 19 percent of deepwater and ultra-deepwater finds globally since 2007. (Source: Marine Link 12/21/16)