Washington: Crude oil production in the Federal Offshore Gulf of America (GOA) is projected to maintain stability through 2026, with an average of 1.80 million barrels per day (b/d) in 2025 and 1.81 million b/d in 2026. This marks a slight increase from the 1.77 million b/d expected in 2024, as reported by the US Energy Information Administration's Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) for May 2025.
According to Emirates News Agency, the STEO anticipates that GOA natural gas production will average 1.72 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2025 and 1.64 Bcf/d in 2026, compared to 1.79 Bcf/d in 2024. These production levels mean that the GOA is expected to contribute around 13% of U.S. crude oil production and 1% of U.S. marketed natural gas production in 2025 and 2026.
The STEO outlines plans for the commencement of crude oil and natural gas production at 13 fields in the GOA during 2025 and 2026. This development is crucial to prevent a decline in GOA production. Eight of these fields will be developed using subsea tiebacks or underwater extensions to existing Floating Production Units (FPUs), while five fields will utilize four new FPUs. Notably, the Salamanca FPU is set to target production from two fields.
The STEO expects that new fields will contribute an additional 85,000 b/d of crude oil production in 2025 and 308,000 b/d in 2026. Furthermore, associated natural gas production from these new fields is projected to average 0.09 Bcf/d in 2025 and 0.27 Bcf/d in 2026.
