Excerpts from Petronas Activity Outlook 2021 to 2023

Drilling rigs: Total drilling demand is expected to be at 22 rigs for 2021 (from 14 in 2H20). The rise in demand mainly comes from hydraulic workover units (HWU) to 5 rigs in 2021 (from only 1 rig in 2H20). Meanwhile, jack-up rig demand is largely expected to remain weak at 10 rigs, up only 1 rig from 9 in 2H20.

Offshore fabrication: The number of new offshore structures are expected to be even lower moving forward, at seven structures in 2021, and only 1 in 2022 (based on Petronas’ base case scenario) – versus 8 structures in 2020 (planned was at 11). This may translate to lower job opportunities for fabricators.

Hook-up and commissioning (HUC): 2021 is expected to be lower at 3.5m man-hours, versus 4.4 million in 2020.

Supply of line pipes: Huge drop-off to 41km in 2021, from 79km in 2020.

Offshore maintenance, construction and modification (MCM): 2021 is expected to be slightly lower at 10.1 million man-hours, versus 11.2 million in 2020.

Plant turnaround: 2021 is expected to see higher number of turnarounds at 11, versus 7 in 2020.

Offshore support vessels: Demand for vessels is expected to be slightly higher in 2021 at 303 vessels, versus 279 in 2020. The rise in demand is mainly coinciding with the increased demand for drilling rigs.