Energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie has forecast that output of oil from the Gulf of Mexico will peak in 2025 after a century of rising output.

A number of new platforms are to begin operating over the next two years, meaning output will jump from the current 2.2 million barrels of oil per day to 2.6 million by 2025, and then begin declining, with Wood Mackenzie projecting 2030 output to be something like 1.7 million barrels per day. Energy activity within the Gulf is unlikely to slow down, however. Alongside continuing oil production, carbon capture and storage projects will be utilising depleted oil and gas fields, while offshore wind power installations will also be vying for marine real estate.

Reuters reports that at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas, renewables, carbon capture and storage and the energy transition was the largest grouping of panels, at 24%; drilling, well completions and reservoir engineering was the second at 15%; and the third largest grouping was related to decommissioning and life extension of wells, something of a marker of the direction of the energy industry.