Few markets have been hit harder by coronavirus than United States shale. While global oil prices as a whole have taken quite a beating from a fall in oil demand, a deficit of oil storage, and an oil-price war between the OPEC+ leading members of Saudi Arabia and Russia, the Brent international crude benchmark never went negative. In the United States, it was a different story. Not only did the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude benchmark dip below zero on April 20, it plummeted to nearly $40 below zero per barrel in a previously unthinkable upset. While oil prices have since recovered, shale prices have not bounced back to the $40 a barrel that the U.S. shale industry needs just to break even. In light of this, it’s no surprise that the Permian Basin has been swept by a wave of bankruptcies, shut-in wells, and tens of thousands of […]