Oil producers in some of the most prolific parts of the Permian could lose up to half of their wastewater disposal wells as the Texas Railroad Commission targets the quake-inducing reservoirs in a bid to stem anxiety about increased seismic activity. According to a Rystad report quoted by Reuters, companies including ConocoPhillips, Diamondback Energy, Chevron, Coterra Energy, and Rattler Midstream could lose up to half of their wastewater storage capacity amid the Railroad Commission’s crackdown on deep reservoirs. Also according to the report, ConocoPhillips had already lost some 186,000 bpd worth of wastewater disposal capacity. In December 27, a 4.5-magnitude struck Texas, with the epicenter in the Permian. The tremor followed a series of weaker ones and was followed by more, spurring the Railroad Commission into swift action. The action involved suspending the injection of wastewater from well-drilling and fracking into deep underground reservoirs, and now well operators in […]