Market Trends of Offshore Helicopter Services Industry
Offshore Wind Power Industry Expected to Witness Fastest Growth
- Many of the earlier offshore wind farms were installed close to the land and are easily accessible by boat. However, the newly built offshore wind farms are located farther from the shore, and helicopters are becoming an economical option for transporting crew members to and from the installations. This has created new business areas for offshore helicopter services.
- Offshore helicopter services are mainly used for transferring the crew to the platforms to maintain the wind turbines. As offshore wind turbines face rougher and more corrosive environments, offshore wind farms require frequent maintenance.
- As the offshore wind power industry moves toward deeper and harsher environments, the demand for wind turbine maintenance activities and, in turn, offshore helicopter services for the offshore wind industry is increasing.
- In 2022, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency, the total offshore wind installed capacity worldwide was 63,200 MW. The annual growth rate was approximately 16.5% compared to 2021. Thus, as the installed offshore wind capacity increases, maintenance activities for wind turbines are expected to occur continuously, which, in turn, will drive the market.
- Historically, European nations like Denmark, Germany, and the United Kingdom dominated the offshore wind power industry. But Asian countries, such as China, Taiwan, and India, have also announced plans to develop the domestic offshore wind sector, which is expected to drive the geographical expansion of the helicopter services market for wind farms during the forecast period.
- Furthermore, according to the US Department of Energy, several offshore wind power projects are in various stages of development in the country. For instance, in September 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration announced that the country's government was launching coordinated actions to develop new floating offshore wind platforms. The country set a target of deploying 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind by 2030, which will likely drive the offshore energy market during the forecast period.
- Among the end-user industries, the offshore wind industry is expected to grow fastest during the forecast period.
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Europe to Dominate the Market
- Europe is estimated to be the largest market among the regions for the market studied. This is mainly due to the many offshore oil and gas platforms, severe sea conditions, and strict safety regulations promoting helicopter services for transportation.
- Most of the United Kingdom's (UK) production comes from the rich offshore resource base straddling the North Sea, Irish Sea, and West Shetlands. Moreover, the British government is expected to announce hundreds of additional North Sea oil and gas exploration licenses to enhance local production. These announcements are expected to act as a robust platform for future E&P activities across the United Kingdom Continental Shelf (UKCS) and help transform exploration activity levels, thus positively impacting the growth of the market studied.
- Only about half of the expected recoverable resources on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) have been produced. At the same time, many of the facilities on the shelf are approaching the end of their expected lives. In the coming years, several of these facilities will likely be shut down and decommissioned responsibly, which may create a demand for offshore helicopter services.
- Moreover, in January 2022, Var Energi and Equinor signed a five-year helicopter-sharing agreement in the North Sea. Var Energi operates 12 regular North Sea flights per week, carrying 180 passengers on average. In the North Sea, it operates the Balder floating production unit and the Ringhorne platform, while the semisubmersible West Phoenix drills additional wells for the Balder Future project. The two companies aim to maximize the utilization of mutually available transportation capacity by coordinating and sharing helicopters and unoccupied seats.
- In addition, decommissioning is expected to take place on 349 fields across the North Sea during 2017-2025, out of which around 214 fields are in the UKCS, 106 fields in the Dutch Continental Shelf, 23 fields in the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), and six fields on the Danish Continental Shelf.
- The growing offshore decommissioning activities in the UKCS and NCS are expected to drive market growth during the forecast period.
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