Distributed Buoyancy Modules Market Analysis | 2020-2025

“The Distributed Buoyancy Modules Market is estimated to rebound from 2022 onwards, reaching an estimated value of US$ 91.6 million by 2025.”

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Market Dynamics

Introduction

Buoyancy is an upward thrust exerted by fluid opposing the weight of the immersed object. This upward thrust is equal to the weight of the water displaced by the immersed object. Buoyancy products are objects fabricated to apply these solutions. Distributed buoyancy modules are clamped to umbilical, risers, or pipelines to hold them in specific geometric configurations with an aim to prevent overutilization of the system. The modules are attached to the equipment through clamps, which makes them easy and quick to install. They are widely used in SURF applications in offshore oil & gas production and offshore wind farm cables.

In 2014, when oil price began plummeting, offshore exploration activity reduced in parallel, falling nearly 40% before finding its bottom in 2016-2017. It led to an approximate plunge of 60% in offshore exploration expenditure during 2014-2017, mainly due to the reduced cashflow, growth of US shale gas production, and reduction in offshore acreage awarded. But then came 2018, the year of transition of the global offshore oil & gas industry with an increase in the well count since the start of the downturn. In 2019, an increase of 8%-10% was witnessed in the number of offshore exploration wells drilled compared to 2018.

Market Drivers

The demand for distributed buoyancy modules is largely dependent on the health of the offshore oil & gas investments. It is anticipated that the market for distributed buoyancy modules will plummet in 2020, mainly because of nose-diving offshore oil & gas investments across regions. However, the rate of decline will not be huge since the major distributed buoyancy module suppliers have piled many contracts, which may help them to survive in this challenging market environment. However, they have been expecting a steep decline in the year 2021. 

COVID-19 Impact

The oil & gas industry stakeholders were predicting the year 2020 as another remarkable year for exploration with about 45 countries expected to launch more than 50 lease rounds out of which 60% were in offshore areas. But the outbreak of the COVID-19 in China and its rapid spread across the world led to gloomy market conditions.

The prices of crude oil declined from $60 per barrel at the start of the year to $20 per barrel in the month of April in the wake of the steep fall in crude oil demand followed by the collapse of the three-year-old pact between Russia and Saudi Arabia. Further, the discount on oil prices by Saudi Arabia and the increase in crude oil production by Russia and Saudi Arabia worsened the industry conditions.

As for Rystad Energy, there will be a plunge of almost 60% in newly licensed offshore oil & gas exploration acreage this year.  Similarly, the firm is also expecting a massive decline of about 68% in 2020 from 2019 in oil & gas project sanctioning. In 2019, the offshore oil & gas project sanctioned was about US$ 104 billion, which may fall to US$ 39 billion and US$ 31 billion, assuming the oil price scenario of US$ 40 per barrel and US$ 30, respectively.  

Segments Analysis

By Application Type

“The riser system dominates the market during the forecast period.”

The market is segmented into riser systems, flowlines, umbilical, wind farm cables, and others. The riser system is expected to remain the largest segment of the market during the forecast period. Continuous efforts of oil & gas companies to obtain maximum efficiency, reduce break-even cost for offshore oil & gas production, and increase deepwater and ultra-deepwater oil & gas production are driving the demand for distributed buoyancy modules in riser systems.

Wind farm cable is estimated to be the fastest-growing application of the market during the same period. High focus on the development of renewable energy of the leading economies with increased attention towards offshore wind energy is primarily driving the demand for distributed buoyancy modules in the segment. Reduction in the production cost of offshore wind turbines with the development of more efficient, larger turbines and government initiatives to boost renewable energy are attracting companies to invest in offshore wind energy, which, in turn, is propelling the demand for distributed buoyancy modules for wind farm cable applications.

By Material Type

“Synthetic foam dominates the market during the forecast period.”

The market is segmented into synthetic foam, polyurethane foam, and others. Synthetic foam is expected to remain the dominant material during the forecast period. Distributed buoyancy modules are mostly used for deepwater and ultra-deepwater applications. High buoyancy per volume and extremely low water absorption properties makes synthetic foam the first preference for ultra-deepwater and deepwater applications.

Polyurethane foam is estimated to be the fastest-growing material type during the same period. Most of the offshore wind farms operate in shallow water and use polyurethane-foam based distributed buoyancy modules for cable applications. Rapidly increasing offshore wind installations are generating a huge demand for polyurethane-based distributed buoyancy modules.

Regional Analysis

“Europe dominates the market during the forecast period.”

Despite the European oil & gas industry serverly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, the European region will maintain its leadership in the distributed buoyancy modules market in the coming five years. The credit goes to the flourishing offshore wind energy in the key countries such as the UK. It is anticipated that the demand for DBMs may stall for the short-term in the region with the expected recovery from 2022 onwards. Scheduled new offshore wind turbine installations and increasing activities in deepwater and ultra-deepwater oil fields in the North Sea will contribute towards a healthy demand generation of distributed buoyancy modules in the region in the long run.

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North America is expected to be the fastest-growing market for distributed buoyancy modules during the forecast period. Offshore wind production in the USA is expected to commence from 2022 as production cost has been reduced by using more efficient and bigger turbines. As per GWEC, around 5.8 GW of offshore wind energy installations are expected to be installed by 2024 in North America, which will generate a healthy demand for distributed buoyancy modules in the region. Also, the USA is the largest producer of crude oil in the world, which further aids the demand for these modules in the region.

Key Players

The market is highly populated with the presence of several local, regional, and global players. Most of the major players compete in some of the governing factors including price, product offerings, regional presence, etc. The supply chain of this market comprises raw material suppliers, distributed buoyancy modules manufacturers, distributors, and end users (such as oil & gas companies, and offshore renewable energy firms).

The following are the key players in the distributed buoyancy modules market (arranged alphabetically).

• Advance Insulation
• ALSEAMER.
• Balmoral Offshore Engineering
• Bardot Group
• DeepWater Buoyancy, Inc.
• Fendercare Marine
• Floatex S.R.L
• Forum Energy Technologies, Inc.
• Matrix Composites & Engineering Limited
• Trelleborg AB

Note: The above list does not necessarily include all the top players in the market.

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Report Features

This report provides market intelligence most comprehensively. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into the market dynamics and will enable strategic decision-making for the existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market.

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Research Methodology

This strategic assessment report, from Stratview Research, provides a comprehensive analysis that reflects today’s distributed buoyancy modules market realities and future market possibilities for the forecast period. The report segments and analyzes the market in the most detailed manner to provide a panoramic view of the market. The vital data/information provided in the report can play a crucial role for the market participants as well as investors in the identification of the low-hanging fruits available in the market as well as to formulate the growth strategies to expedite their growth process. This report offers high-quality insights and is the outcome of a detailed research methodology comprising extensive secondary research, rigorous primary interviews with industry stakeholders, and validation and triangulation with Stratview Research’s internal database and statistical tools. 

More than 1,000 authenticated secondary sources, such as company annual reports, fact books, press releases, journals, investor presentations, white papers, patents, and articles, have been leveraged to gather the data. 

We conducted more than 15 detailed primary interviews with the market players across the value chain in all four regions and industry experts to obtain both qualitative and quantitative insights.

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