Proppants or ceramic proppants produced in engineered proppants plants are sand-like materials that are used in the fracking and hydraulic fracturing stage of oil & gas production or extraction.
The demand for oil & gas was gauged to be 145.7 mboe/d in 2015, and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) projects that the demand will catapult to 193.9 mboe/d in 2040.[1] This growing demand for oil & gas is poised to drive associated industries, and one of those sectors is the proppants market, which was worth $8.1 billion as of 2018. This is because proppants are used during the fracking stage of oil & gas extraction. Owing to the augmented demand for oil & gas, the proppants market is poised to observe growth at a profitable compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.10% during the forecast period 2019--2025.
According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), in 2018, as much as 6.44 million barrels per day of crude oil production in the U.S. was attributed to tight oil resources, which equals to 59% of the total crude oil production in the U.S.[2] North America has been the highest producer of oil & gas for quite a few years, and undisputedly so because of the booming shale gas market in countries such as the US and Canada. Evidently, the oil & gas industry in the region is offering opportunities to the vendors in the proppants market. North America had the highest proppants market share of 71% in 2018.
Proppants Market Outlook:
Proppants or ceramic proppants produced in engineered proppants plants are sand-like materials that are used in the fracking and hydraulic fracturing stage of oil & gas production or extraction. They are used for fracking with various oil & gas resources such as shale gas, tight oil, and coal bed methane.
The most gainful segment of the proppants market is frac sand, which is poised to observe an increment at a staggering CAGR of 54% over the forecast period. This can be attributed to the amplified supply of frac sand, which is easily available and relatively affordable. Even though in-basin sand mines are proving to be a threat to the frac sand market, the mines are not yet operational, and the future will observe an increasing application of frac sand for the fracking process.
Proppants Market Growth Drivers:
The Overall Growth of Hydraulic Fracturing Services
According to the US EIA, 95% of the new wells drilled are hydraulically fractured, which substantially supports the hydraulic fracturing market.[3] The growth prospects in the hydraulic fracturing & services market can be further fathomed by the fact that the U.S. and Canada are continuously observing rise in the revenues generated from this market. Evidently, the service providers need proppants that are designed to keep an induced hydraulic fracture open during the process. Furthermore, the exploration and production activities are makings strides, and therefore, there is a discernible demand influx in the hydraulic fracturing market, which is supporting the proppants market.
The Resin-Coated Proppants Gaining Traction
The resin-coated proppants are found to be increasing productivity of oil wells. An increase in oil well activities is foreseen in order to meet the demand for oil & gas as mentioned in the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN). This will require an enhanced efficiency in activities, and so, the resin-coated proppants will be used more. The vendors in the proppants market will observe an increased application of resin-coated proppants.
According to the US EIA, 95% of the new wells drilled are hydraulically fractured, which substantially supports the hydraulic fracturing market.[3] The growth prospects in the hydraulic fracturing & services market can be further fathomed by the fact that the U.S. and Canada are continuously observing rise in the revenues generated from this market. Evidently, the service providers need proppants that are designed to keep an induced hydraulic fracture open during the process. Furthermore, the exploration and production activities are makings strides, and therefore, there is a discernible demand influx in the hydraulic fracturing market, which is supporting the proppants market.
The Resin-Coated Proppants Gaining Traction
The resin-coated proppants are found to be increasing productivity of oil wells. An increase in oil well activities is foreseen in order to meet the demand for oil & gas as mentioned in the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN). This will require an enhanced efficiency in activities, and so, the resin-coated proppants will be used more. The vendors in the proppants market will observe an increased application of resin-coated proppants.
Ceramic Proppants to Observe Demand Influx for High-Pressure Operations
The deep and high-pressure oil wells in Texas, Los Angeles, Saudi Arabia, and Nigeria typically require heavy-weight ceramics with high alumina or bauxite content. Evidently, ceramic proppants have stronger molecular structure as compared to others. Furthermore, they have a consistent size and spherical shape and offer higher crush strength as compared to others. The exploration activities in the deep, high-temperature, and high-pressure oil wells is poised to drive the ceramic proppants market.
Proppants Market Trends
Incorporation of Ecofriendly Processes in Oil Wells
The protection of environment has become imperative in all the industries and the oil & gas sector is no different. Ceramic proppants will observe growth because of they are found to be relatively much more ecofriendly in nature.
Proppants Market Challenges
The major challenge in front of the vendors in the proppants market is the reduction in operating expenses caused by sand and proppant flowing back. This also affects the turnaround time. However, in the future, the oil well operations will observe the use of resin-coated proppants, which will alleviate the problem of proppant flowing back, but the inculcation of this process will shoot up the budget and create a challenging pricing environment in the proppants market. Moreover, there is going to be a dynamism in the demand of oil & gas for a short period of time, which will affect the proppants market over the forecast period.
Proppants Market Key Players Perspective
The major players striving to capitalize on the demand influx in the proppants market are Badger Mining Corporation, Momentive Performance Materials, Unimin Corporation, U.S. Silica Holdings Inc., Compagnie de Saint-Gobain S.A., Carbo Ceramics, Inc., Fores, Cadre, Borovichi Refractories Plant, Mineracao Curimbaba Ltd., and Hi-Crush LP Partners.
Proppants Market Research Scope:
The base year of the study is 2018, with forecast done up to 2025. The study presents a thorough analysis of the competitive landscape, taking into account the market shares of the leading companies. It also provides information on unit shipments. These provide the key market participants with the necessary business intelligence and help them understand the future of the proppants market. The assessment includes the forecast, an overview of the competitive structure, the market shares of the competitors, as well as the market trends, market demands, market drivers, market challenges, and product analysis. The market drivers and restraints have been assessed to fathom their impact over the forecast period. This report further identifies the key opportunities for growth while also detailing the key challenges and possible threats. The proppants market research report also analyses the application of proppants in shale gas, tight oil, and coal bed methane mining processes in the oil & gas industry.
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Proppants Market Report: Industry Coverage
The proppants market report identified the current trends, opportunities, and challenges in the industry along with a detailed depiction of strategies by the existing market players.
The report also analyzes the proppants market on the basis of type that includes sand, resin-coated, and ceramic proppants with growth prospects in each segment with future projections.
The report also analyzes the major geographic regions as well as the major countries in these regions. The regions and countries covered in the study include:
North America: The U.S., Canada, Mexico
South America: Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica
Europe: The U.K., Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Denmark
APAC: China, Japan, Australia, South Korea, India, Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong
Middle East and Africa: Israel, South Africa, Saudi Arabia
Proppants Market Report: Industry Coverage
The proppants market report identified the current trends, opportunities, and challenges in the industry along with a detailed depiction of strategies by the existing market players.
The report also analyzes the proppants market on the basis of type that includes sand, resin-coated, and ceramic proppants with growth prospects in each segment with future projections.
The report also analyzes the major geographic regions as well as the major countries in these regions. The regions and countries covered in the study include:
North America: The U.S., Canada, Mexico
South America: Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica
Europe: The U.K., Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Denmark
APAC: China, Japan, Australia, South Korea, India, Taiwan, Malaysia, Hong Kong
Middle East and Africa: Israel, South Africa, Saudi Arabia
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