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Reducing Freshwater for Fracking
Hydraulic fracturing (fracking), as the name implies, requires water, and lots of it. While this has always been the case, the shale revolution has moved freshwater requirements from a consideration to a major issue. Historically oil and gas are often found in arid regions and major shale plays such as the Bakken in North Dakota,… Read More
Shifting LNG Economics
The shale revolution flooded the domestic natural gas market with large volumes which in turn led to stagnant prices. Consequently, U. S. gas producers have long seen Asian LNG markets as a highly lucrative alternative. Predictably, a number of LNG projects were approved and are under construction. “World Oil” reports that the Chenerie Energy Inc.… Read More
Exxon’s Permian Strategy
Exxon Mobil, through its domestic shale subsidiary XTO Energy, is taking an innovative approach to structuring deals in the Permian Basin. Since its acquisition of XTO in 2010, the company has been committed to increasing domestic shale production. Shortly after the XTO transaction, Exxon bought Ellora Energy Inc. (Haynesville shale of North Louisiana), as well… Read More
Alta Mesa Partners
The dramatic and sustained collapse of oil prices is exacting an especially heavy toll on smaller exploration and production companies. As hedge contracts, which locked in higher prices, expire cash become harder to come by. One way to generate cash is through asset sales. Another is through reserve-based lines of credit. This involves the operator… Read More
More with Less
Oil rig counts and capital budgets have always been a leading indicator of production levels. While this is still true, a recent article in “World Oil “ contends that the correlation might be changing. The U. S. oil rig count has dropped 59% from its peak last year, but production has fallen only 5%. This… Read More
