Category: Shale Oil

The number of rigs actively exploring for or producing oil and natural gas in North Dakota hits new low at 80, state data show. Photo by David Gaylor/Shutterstock BISMARCK, N.D., June 1 (UPI) — The number of rigs actively exploring for or producing oil and gas in North Dakota hit a new low Monday at 80, state data show. The number of rigs in service in North Dakota, a state at the heart of the shale oil and gas boom, was down 62 percent from 2012 levels and 57 percent lower than this date in 2014. State data show oil production in March, the last full month for which data are available, was 1.19 million barrels per day, a 1 percent increase from the previous month, but 2.6 percent below the all-time high reached in December 2014. The state’s oil and gas division reported the number of wells in […]

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Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signs state measure that’s meant to avoid "patchwork" of local legislation on oil and gas drilling. File Photo by UPI/J.P. Wilson OKLAHOMA CITY, June 1 (UPI) — Oklahoma’s governor said a "patchwork" approach to oil and gas regulation wasn’t in the state’s interest, reaffirming a state entity as the sole overseer. Gov. Mary Fallin signed a bill establishing the state’s Corporation Commission as the sole regulator of the oil and gas industry in the state. "The bill aims to preserve a unified regulatory framework for the industry and prevent a confusing patchwork of inconsistent municipal regulations across the state," her office said in a statement. "A patchwork of regulations that vary across the state would be inconsistent with the goal of reasonable, easily understood regulations and could damage the state’s economy and environment." Fallin’s signature follows last month’s signing by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott of […]

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HOUSTON U.S. shale oil producers, having weathered the worst price plunge in their industry’s brief history, now face a dilemma: whether to stay in a defensive crouch after slashing their rig fleets, or start drilling more wells to capture a partial recovery in prices. In a way, the conundrum is as old as the first oil well. If producers start pumping more crude, as some executives have said they might do if prices edge a bit higher, they risk contributing to another slump in a fragile global market; if they hold back, they forego regaining revenue lost during a price slide of 60 percent that started in June. Yet it is also a changed world. For decades the global industry has been dominated by a handful of mega-majors, which made shifts to the supply and demand balance less rapid and more predictable. Today, about 100 public firms and many […]

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Wall Street’s generous supply of funds to U.S. oil drillers helped create the American energy boom. Now that same access to easy money is keeping them going, despite oil prices that are languishing around $60 a barrel. The flow of money into oil has allowed U.S. companies to avoid liquidity problems and kept American crude production from falling sharply. Even though more than half of the rigs that were drilling new wells in September have been banished to storage yards, in mid-May nearly 9.6 million barrels of oil a day were pumped across the country, the highest level since 1970, according to the most recent federal data. Helped by a ready supply of money, the flow of oil from the U.S. could keep crude prices low for the remainder of 2015 and beyond. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. As crude prices began to plunge last year, many […]

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May 29 (Reuters) – Energy firms pulled another 13 rigs from U.S. oil fields this week, the biggest drop in four weeks, data showed on Friday, showing that a near six-month slump in activity had yet to run its course despite a rebound in crude oil prices. That was the 25th straight weekly decline, bringing the total rig count down to 646, the lowest since August 2010, oil services company Baker Hughes Inc said in its closely followed report. However, in the Eagle Ford basin in South Texas, the nation’s second biggest shale oil field, drillers added one oil rig in the third weekly increase in a row, bringing the total up to 90. The market has been eyeing the U.S. rig count and the increases of a few rigs in some basins over the past few weeks ahead of next week’s meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum […]

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The US drilling rig count dropped 10 units during the week ended May 29 to settle at 875 rigs working, falling below the nadir of the 2008-09 downturn by a single unit, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. The rig count has now declined in 25 consecutive weeks, during which time it has plunged 1,045 units ( OGJ Online, Dec. 5, 2014 ). Compared with this week a year ago, the count is down 991 units. Although an uptick from the mere 3 units lost last week, the loss of 10 units represents the second-smallest decline of the 25-week period. Raymond James & Associates Inc.’s energy research team noted this week that most oil field services companies with which it speaks are saying “the bottom is in” for US drilling following last week’s rise in the US onshore count for the first time since last November. The analyst […]

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The U.S. oil-rig count fell by 13 to 646 in the latest week, according to Baker Hughes Inc., marking the 25th straight week of declines. The drop marks an acceleration from last week when U.S. oil-rig count fell by one, which sparked speculation that the count was bottoming out. The number of U.S. oil drilling rigs–a proxy for activity in the oil industry–has fallen sharply since prices headed south last year. There are now about 60% fewer rigs working since a peak of 1,609 in October. Crude-oil futures gained 4.8% to $60.42 after the data release. Prices have shot up by around 40% in the past two months on expectations that U.S. oil production will slow. But the rally has sputtered recently, as U.S. prices have been unable to hold above $60 a barrel. Earlier this week, the latest U.S. inventory data had mixed news for the oil market. […]

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Continental Resources: 2015 Q1 Continental Resources announces first quarter results that highlights increases in production and reduced costs. In a press release on May 6th, Continental reported a net loss of $132.0 million for the first quarter of 2015 and a production increase to 206,829 boed. Most impressive is the company’s drilling and completion costs , which fell by 15% since 2014 year end. The company expects to see service cost reductions of up to 20% by mid-year and further savings from drilling and completion efficiencies. One example of these efficiencies is the new company record for drilling in the Bakken as they report drilling the two-mile lateral portion of a well in three days, nearly four days faster than its average time to drill a lateral. Bakken Highlights for First Quarter Production averaged 135,538 Boe per day (39% increase over first quarter 2014) Completed 66 net wells Operated an […]

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USGS studies find the United States holds big lead in use of frac sands, with most of the minerals coming from western Great Lakes states. Map courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey WASHINGTON, May 28 (UPI) — While the shale phenomenon may be spreading, a U.S. Geological Survey report finds the United States will continue to lead in the use of sand for fracking. Natural sand grains are mixed into hydraulic fracturing fluids to prop open fractures in underground shale deposits to release trapped oil and natural gas. Advances in hydraulic fracturing, known also as fracking, has put the United States, and Canada to a certain extent, in leadership positions in terms of oil and natural gas production. The North American frac-sand market is a $2.2 billion industry and is expected to expand by as much as 8.9 percent each year through 2016. The United States by next year […]

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Bakken Well Completions Spike Bakken well completions rose sharply last month, according to the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources (DMR). The DMR reports a preliminary completion count for March was 189, up 350% from 42 the previous month. Related:  Bakken Rigs Decrease to 77 Many oil and gas companies who have been hard hit by low crude prices are postponing well completions as a temporary measure in order to wait out the crisis with plans to resume production when oil prices rebound. But oil prices remain unstable, why would North Dakota experience a spike? Director of DMR Lynn Helms speculates that the increase is likely due to state-mandated time limits and major tax incentives, which forced companies to bring 125 wells online by June to comply with time limits. Nathan Conway, CEO of Fortis Energy Services, told OAG360 that “In the state of North Dakota, a well can only […]

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