U.S. shale player Continental Resources said weakness in the energy sector will manifest itself in a slow decline in overall production through 2016. Continental said in a statement laying out its plans for the year that first quarter production will average around 215,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and drop around 13 percent to 185,000 boe in the fourth quarter. Lower crude oil prices means less capital available for energy companies to invest in exploration and production, a trend reflected in the number of drilling rigs deployed across the country. Continental recently pulled four rigs from the Bakken shale oil reserve area in North Dakota, one of the country’s premier basins. For […]