Oil Field Depletion

Oil field depletion refers to the decline in an oil field's production over time, when a field's recoverable resources become exhausted and production is reduced due to the physical limitations of the reservoir. Depletion is a natural process by which an oil field produces an increasing volume of oil until output eventually hits a peak, after which the volume that can be pumped out of that field gradually declines.

The analysis of depletion rates is a key element in forecasting the future production of oil reservoirs. A metric often used to determine the remaining lifespan of an oil reserve is the 'reserves-to-production ratio', used to forecast the future availability of a resource.

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