Analysis of the History of Natural Gas Hydrate Resource Survey and Evaluation in the Gulf of Mexico, USA

The Gulf of Mexico is one of the important oil and gas producing areas in the United States. It has well-developed infrastructure, a high level of research capabilities, and substantial natural gas hydrate resource as estimated in the early stage. Therefore, it has been a key area for hydrate resource exploration and evaluation in the United States. This paper divide the research and development of hydrates in the Gulf of Mexico into three stages, sortes out and summarizes key projects, implementation of expeditions, and major progress for each stage. Additionally, it also reviewes that the history of hydrate resource evaluation in the Gulf of Mexico. Analysis showes that theinvestigation and research of hydrate resources in the Gulf of Mexico have yielded remarkable achievements, attributing to the extensive and in-depth participation of private enterprises and universities, as well as the full utilization of the data and experience obtained from the oil and gas industry. However, in recent years, progress had exhibited a slowing trend due to the declining prioritization of hydrate research and development by the U.S. government.