Global oil and gas project approvals are on track to exceed US$100 billion in 2026, driven by renewed momentum in offshore and deepwater developments, SLB Chief Executive Olivier Le Peuch said on the company’s Q1 earnings call on Friday.
This, he said, would represent stronger investment activity than in the past two years.
Le Peuch said the pipeline of final investment decisions (FIDs) is “strengthening” and heading decisively above the US$100 billion mark, with another step-up expected in 2027 as companies move to secure large-scale, long-term sources of supply.
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The rebound is being supported by growing demand for energy security and a rebalancing of global supply, with offshore projects offering durable production capacity, he said.
Regionally, SLB sees expanding opportunities across Africa, Asia and Latin America, with deepwater resources expected to capture a significant share of new investments.
In Latin America, Le Peuch highlighted continued strength in offshore developments “from Guyana to Brazil to Suriname,” stressing the region’s role in the next wave of supply growth.
SLB is a key contractor to ExxonMobil in Guyana, where the U.S. oil major and its partners are advancing multiple deepwater projects in the prolific Stabroek Block. Production has already surpassed 900,000 barrels per day, with additional developments scheduled to come online this year and in the years leading up to 2030.
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Guyana is widely seen as one of the fastest-growing sources of new oil supply globally, as ExxonMobil executes a series of back-to-back project startups aimed at sustaining rapid output growth through the end of the decade and potentially beyond.
Le Peuch said customers are increasingly prioritizing large-scale offshore developments to ensure reliable supply, a trend that is also expected to support higher exploration activity and improve certainty around project approvals.
Beyond Latin America, Africa was identified as a major long-term opportunity due to its large base of underdeveloped oil and gas resources, while Asia continues to prioritize access to gas, both onshore and offshore.
SLB expects these dynamics to underpin a multi-year investment cycle, supported by three main drivers: replenishment of depleted commercial inventories, diversification of supply sources, and increased focus on countries developing local resources to strengthen long-term resilience.
These dynamics are seen as “supporting a positive outlook for SLB into 2027 and 2028,” Le Peuch said.
