The number of active rigs in the US is not likely to reach the highs of the shale revolution, but demand for steel in the energy industry is expected to be higher than it was prior to the collapse of the energy market, Nicole Leonard, project manager for S&P Global Platts Analytics Oil & Gas Consulting, said Monday.
"Going forward, by 2019, we predict steel demand in the Permian is going to equal steel demand in 2014," Leonard said at Platts' 13th annual Steel Market North America Conference in Chicago.
Even though US producers are drilling less wells, the amount of steel used per well has been on the rise, Leonard said. For example, in 2010 the average gas well would require roughly 210 mt of steel, now it's closer to 400 mt, she said.
As lateral lengths have gotten longer and wells have gotten deeper, steel intensity has increased significantly, she said. Steel demand per well has increased 45% per well since 2010, according to Leonard.
Lateral lengths differ depending on the geology of the shale play, but overall lengths are expected to increase going forward, Leonard said. Currently, producers are reporting lateral lengths as long as 20,000 feet in shale plays throughout Ohio and Pennsylvania.
"Steel intensity is increasing significantly," she said.
