Demand for large-diameter offshore pipelines, aka trunklines, is expected to drop by 26% in 2020 before rebounding to near pre-Covid levels by 2022, Rystad Energy forecasted Monday.

trunkline pipeline

Natural gas pipelines account for more than 90% of the nearly 100 offshore trunkline projects slated for development from 2020-2024, Rystad analysts said.

“The offshore trunkline market will recover to its prior levels in the next few years, driven by a handful of large transmission lines between regional markets and numerous export lines from upcoming offshore gas field developments,” said Rystad’s Henning Bjørvik, energy service analyst.

The Rystad team highlighted that the trunkline market is divided into two segments: export trunklines connected to upstream processing or production...