While Permian oil and gas production was soaring in 2018, U.S. midstream operators were planning and building pipeline takeaway capacity, expecting that the largest U.S. shale play would increase output for years to come, even if at a slower pace than before. Pipeline companies rushed to invest in and complete new oil pipelines in the region to stay ahead of the booming Permian production. But they got ahead of themselves in boosting pipeline takeaway capacity. The black swan year of 2020 exposed the stark reality of the shale and pipeline construction boom. Current pipeline capacity in the Permian is exceeding production so much that in a year or two, when pipelines currently under construction are completed, Permian producers could find themselves using just half of the available takeaway infrastructure, according to analysts. Pipeline Overbuild Granted, oil pipeline infrastructure was already running ahead of Permian production at the end of […]