Category: Shale Oil

In a regulatory filing Tuesday , the U.S. shale driller said it expects to post third-quarter charges of roughly $55.5 million related to the move. Because of the swoon in oil prices, Chesapeake has reduced rig operations and cut capital expenditures after failing to offset the plunge with higher production. Chesapeake, based in Oklahoma City, had about 5,000 employees. On Tuesday, 740 of them were laid off, with about 560 of those positions coming from the home office in Oklahoma, the company said. “As you are fully aware, the current commodity price environment continues to be a challenge for our industry and for Chesapeake,” Chief Executive Doug Lawler wrote in an email to employees. “While this was extremely difficult, we are acting decisively and prudently to enhance the long-term competitiveness and strength of Chesapeake.” Shares of Chesapeake Energy, down 71% over the past year, fell 0.3% to $6.77 in […]

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North Dakota rig count increased by four, with much of the reported during the weekend. Photo by Steve Oehlenschlager/Shutterstock BISMARCK, N.D., Sept. 28 (UPI) — North Dakota bucked the nationwide trend by adding more rigs to its state portfolio with the total number increasing by nearly 6 percent. State data show 71 rigs actively exploring for or producing oil and natural gas in the state. That’s up nearly 6 percent , or four rigs, from the previous week. Most of the new rig activity came during the weekend. Data from oil field services company Baker Hughes show North Dakota lost one rig last week compared with the week ending Sept. 25. Texas for the week lost the most rigs with a total decline of two. Energy companies are spending less on exploration and production because of the steady decline in crude oil prices, down by about half from last […]

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Texas oil production holding steady, though rig activity is on a clear decline, state data show. File photo by Lilac Mountain/Shutterstock AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 28 (UPI) — Though drilling permits are on the decline, Texas crude oil production held more or less steady month-to-month, state data for July show. The Railroad Commission of Texas, the state’s energy regulator, reports 2.45 million barrels of oil produced per day in July, the last full month for which the state has data. Year-on-year, total crude oil production is up 9.3 percent . Month-to-month, production is up about eight tenths of a percent. The commission said Texas oil production came from 176,810 oil wells in the state. In its latest report on rig activity, the state regulator said the number of drilling permits issued in Texas was down more than half from the same month last year to 864, of which 730 were […]

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Unused oil tank cars are pictured on Western New York & Pennsylvania Railroad tracks outside Hinsdale, New York August 24, 2015. A number of U.S. shale oil and gas companies are securing unchanged or even increased credit allotments during their semi-annual loan reviews, defying expectations that banks would slash small firms’ credit lines in response to low crude prices. According to a Reuters review of disclosures made by 19 independent U.S. shale oil and gas companies since Aug. 1, at least 11 have said their borrowing bases have been or will be maintained or increased. In contrast, just five talked about cuts. It is too early to tell if the whole sector will emerge equally largely unscathed from the reviews. Many more companies from a batch of about 60 U.S. independents typically tracked by investment banks will probably make disclosures after the usual loan reset deadline of Oct. 1. […]

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Photographer: Brittany Sowacke/Bloomberg It’s every U.S. shale investor for himself as the worst oil rout in almost 30 years drags down its latest victims. Investors in $158.2 million of Goodrich Petroleum Corp.’s debt agreed to take 47 cents on the dollar in exchange for stock warrants for some note holders and a lien on Goodrich’s oil acreage, according to a company statement today. That puts them second in line if the Houston-based company liquidates its assets in bankruptcy and pushes the remaining holders of $116.8 million in original bonds to the back of the pack. "In the industry it’s called ‘getting primed,’" said Spencer Cutter, a credit analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence. "It’s every man for himself. They’re trying to get in and get exchanged, and if you can’t you’re getting left out in the cold." Wildcatters attracted billions of dollars during the boom after years of near-zero interest rates […]

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This series of reports provides an initial assessment of world shale oil and shale gas resources. The first edition was released in 2011 and updates are released on an on-going basis. Four countries were added in 2014: Chad, Kazakhstan, Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and are available as supplemental chapters to the 2013 report Technically Recoverable Shale Oil and Shale Gas Resources . The most current version of each country chapter is linked in the table of countries below. Archived editions are provided in links in the sidebar column to the right. Countries assessed by date Unproved technically recoverable Region Country wet shale gas (trillion cubic feet) tight oil (billion barrels) Date updated North America Canada 572.9 8.8 4/14/15 Mexico 545.2 13.1 5/17/13 U.S. 1 622.5 78.2 4/14/15 Australia Australia 2 429.3 15.6 5/17/13 South America Argentina 801.5 27.0 5/17/13 Bolivia 36.4 0.6 5/17/13 Brazil 244.9 5.3 […]

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The North Dakota Industrial Commission approved Thursday an industry proposal to delay further cuts to associated gas flaring until at least October 2016. The proposal, from the North Dakota Petroleum Council, is needed due to the lack of new gas capture and pipeline infrastructure, which have been delayed for a variety of reasons, including low oil and gas prices, right-of-way disputes and pad size limitations, the council argued. Under a state mandate the commission approved in 2014, operators were required to reach a set of benchmarks to limit flaring over time, including 15% by 2016 and 10% by 2020. Producers would face production curtailment penalties if they fail to meet those flaring reduction benchmarks. But according to the industry group, operators are unable to reach the upcoming 15% benchmark and want it pushed back to at least October 2016. The three-member commission, which includes North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple, […]

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The latter part of 2014’s plummeting oil prices set the stage for a challenging 2015 and remaining uncertainty for 2016. Companies large and small, independent and integrated, have been affected by the downturn. It seemed like there were layoffs abound in 2015 – more than 150,000 were reported in June . No company was immune. But, despite the downturn, companies have to remain operational. Somewhere in between continual mass layoffs and companies becoming insolvent has to be a middle ground that both companies and workers will accept. Is part-time work the answer? Rigzone explores the possibility. Weighing Options When the industry peaks and exploration and production is up, companies may feel like they have plenty of employees, but once they start trimming employees during a downturn, there’s significantly less people to do the work or any new work that comes about. With the amount of layoffs already reported this […]

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Energy Capital Partners is seeking seeking buyers for its interest in Summit Midstream Partners LP, a deal that would include a minority stake in the pipeline operator as well as ownership of its general partner, according to people familiar with the matter. The sale would also include some oil and gas gathering and processing operations in North Dakota, Colorado and Ohio owned by an affiliate of Summit Midstream, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. Energy Capital is working with Barclays Plc to find a buyer for the assets, which could fetch at least $2 billion, one person said. If offers are too low, the firm may also consider taking the assets public. Such a listing would resemble Tallgrass Energy Partners LP’s initial public offering earlier this year of affiliate Tallgrass Energy GP, the people said. A spokesman for Barclays declined to […]

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