U.S. shale oil production will continue growing even if international prices fall, says Rystad Energy. The Norwegian energy consultancy said in a new report that despite a decline in the number of drilling rigs in the U.S. shale patch since the start of the year, the number of spudded wells has not fallen significantly. What’s more, production growth has continued in the face of spending reductions prompted by prices. According to Rystad, investments in shale oil have fallen by 6 percent this year, to some $129 billion and will fall further, by another 11 percent in 2020. The reason for the spending cuts is a renewed focus on cash discipline and free cash flow generation, Rystad said, adding this will be the first case of two consecutive annual spending cuts since 2014. Even with the cuts, Rystad expects U.S. shale oil production to grow to 11.6 million bpd by […]