Following the industry downturn, oil majors appear to be acting cautiously when considering investments in new projects and are seeking out simple, repeatable design and other contracting strategies to reduce costs. Two years of uncertainty in crude-oil pricing has meant that projects in the design and execution phases have tapered off, notes Shaun Boardman, director of technology, petroleum and chemicals at Jacobs Engineering.
根据国际能源局的“市场报告系列：2017年石油”的报道，“ 2015年全球石油和天然气上游投资在2015年下降了25％，2016年又下降了26％。”IEA说，进一步下跌的价格可能会推迟未来的投资。报告指出：“当投资确实恢复时，它将为一个比以往任何时候都更精细和更健康的行业服务，并且能够以更少的方式提供更多的业务。”
关于$620 billion in projects through 2020 has been deferred or canceled, and the appetite for long-term, complex major capital projects has waned, according to advisory firm Deloitte.
However, now that pricing appears to be stabilizing, “we are seeing a resurgence of interest and a return of investment opportunities,” Boardman says. “This activity will spin off as engineering and new construction over the next few years.”
伍德集团（Wood Group）离岸业务部门主席肯特·麦卡利斯特（Kent McAllister）指出18luck官网，虽然过去一年的海上项目有所增加，但这些工作主要是重新开始的现有项目，这些项目被推迟或搁置。他说：“新18luck官网项目在那里，但是成本压力继续推动生产效果设计的效率和创新，并且缺乏钻探已经在新项目中造成了滞后。”
McAllister指出，随着定价的下降压力，合同策略的关注和EPCI解决方案发生了变化。
While U.S. refiners are now focusing on expanding or revamping their facilities, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific are planning new refineries, says Dan Spinks, vice president and general manager at Fluor’s Houston office.
多亏了页岩气，北美的低成本原料也正在驾驶工作，Spinks Notes，第二波的化学物质和石化综合体计划在美国墨西哥湾沿岸进行，这是由于这一优势。
McAllister补充说：“在可预见的将来，美国页岩将成为该行业的增长引擎。”
Offshore areas of growth will be the Norwegian Continental Shelf, Mexico and, eventually, Brazil, McAllister predicts. “The industry has slashed spend to less than half its 2014 peak.”
Lower oil and gas prices also are compelling firms to improve their projects’ capital efficiency, cost and schedule certainty, so only high-value, high-priority projects are moving forward, Spinks adds.
Although drilling and production is picking up, McAllister notes that operators are seeing reduced cash flow and profitability because of global pressure on oil and gas pricing.
他说：“海上显示了弹性的迹象，但是陆上非常规的资本流动使离岸，尤其是在安全投资领域中受到质疑的深水发展。”
