US Shale Producers Promise Higher Output and Returns
U.S. shale producers are telling investors impatient for better returns that they can keep boosting oil output aggressively and do so while still making money for shareholders. Investors have pushed top U.S. shale companies to focus on returns, rather than higher output, a move that threatened to slow the breakneck growth in supply sparked by the shale revolution in the world's top oil consumer.
U.S. Shale Back in Business, Buoyed by OPEC, Trump
U.S. shale producers are redeploying cash, rigs and workers, cautiously confident the energy sector has turned a corner after Donald Trump's election victory and OPEC's recent signal that it plans to curb production. The downturn produced a leaner, more efficient U.S. shale industry that was forced to develop and quickly adapt…
EOG Sees Ability for 'Strong Returns' in $40 Oil Environment
EOG Resources Inc has the ability to post strong returns with oil prices around $40 a barrel, and would post triple-digit returns should prices spike to $60, chief executive Bill Thomas told investors on Friday. EOG, considered one of the most efficient U.S. drillers, has a $15-20 per barrel cost advantage over the rest of the industry…
U.S. Shale to OPEC: Above $40, We are Coming Back
For leading U.S. shale oil producers, $40 is the new $70. Less than a year ago major shale firms were saying they needed oil above $60 a barrel to produce more; now some say they will settle for far less in deciding whether to crank up output after the worst oil price crash in a generation. Their latest comments highlight the industry's remarkable resilience…
Saudi Oil Minister to Face Rival U.S. Producers as Price Rout Bites
This week, Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi will for the first time face the victims of his decision to keep oil pumps flowing despite a global glut: U.S. shale oil producers struggling to survive the worst price crash in years. While soaring U.S. shale output brought on by the hydraulic fracturing revolution contributed to oversupply…
US Shale Cash Markets Offer Hope amid Gloom
In shale strongholds of North Dakota and Texas, physical crude grades are trading at the highest premiums to futures prices in years, offering a glimmer of hope that a pickup in global oil markets might follow. While crude futures hover around 6-1/2-year lows, the cash markets, where producers and refiners buy and sell physical barrels of oil, are sending a more optimistic, if short-term, signal.
EOG Resources CEO: Oil Prices to Rise in 2016
A jump in prices would only help EOG, one of the largest shale oil producers in the United States, as it looks to weather a more-than 50 percent drop in oil since last summer - a drop that has led to a rash of layoffs and budget cuts around the industry. Indeed, EOG itself has slashed spending, curbing the number of drilling rigs it has used this year from 50 in January to 15.
U.S. Fracker Dilemma: Crouch or Pounce?
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…
US Shale Oil Firms Say Refracking Not the Best Path in Downturn
Refracking, the practice of fracking an oil and gas well a second time, is still too unpredictable to rely on as a way to slash costs and increase output during the oil price slump, top U.S. shale oil executives said on Tuesday. Oilfield service companies, including Schlumberger NV and Baker Hughes Inc., have touted refracking as a cheap way to revive output from existing shale wells.
US Shale Firms Brace for More Pain
With the prospect of another plunge in crude prices looming after two months of stability, U.S. shale oil producers may face another round of spending cuts to conserve cash and survive the downturn. A deeper retrenchment would have far-reaching effects. Additional cutbacks would further gut the already-hemorrhaging oilfield services industry and may heighten expectations for a steeper drop in U.S.
Anadarko Looking to Move Past Tronox Legal Saga
Anadarko Petroleum Corp on Tuesday said it expects to end its long-running legal saga surrounding Tronox Ltd sometime during the second half of this year, closure that will allow it to focus more intently on its oil and gas operations. Al Walker, Anadarko's chief executive officer, told investors on a conference call that he believes the matter is "in the rearview mirror…
