Without further ado, here’s your customer-by-customer mid-year drilling program checkup… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please …
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Sahara Wellsite Storage System Up Close And Personal [Appalachian Site Visit]
Last week, our team had a chance to spend a little time in the Marcellus/Utica. In addition to gathering some general observations about the market, we visited a Sahara wellsite storage system and spent some time talking with management. Here is what we learned about the system and management’s deployment …
Read More »About That Busy Northeast Pilot Express… Here’s Why It’s So Busy.
Earlier this week, we published some notes from the road after spending time in the Marcellus/Utica frac supply chain last week. If you read that piece, you probably remember the section on the extremely busy Pilot Express fuel station near Steubenville, OH where we saw dozens of frac sand trucks …
Read More »It Floats! Positive Water Midstream Datapoint From Diamondback Spinco IPO
The great local sand rush of 2017-2018 has clearly slowed down here as sand prices have dropped into a trough (we estimate Permian FOB mine prices are down some 65% y/y). What’s going on with operations though? Is more sand still to come? We take a look in this data-driven …
Read More »Firsthand Observations On The Marcellus Frac Supply Chain [Notes From The Road & Photos]
A contingent of the Infill Thinking team ventured into the heart of the Marcellus/Utica play last week to gather some boots on the ground intelligence. Here are some of the things we saw, heard and learned on our trip. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the …
Read More »Appalachian Drilling & Completions Activity Trends – Better In 1H19 Than 2H18
Following our Appalachian oilfield trip last week, we are shining a spotlight on Marcellus / Utica drilling and completions trends in this edition of our regular weekly rig count. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our …
Read More »A Dozen US Onshore Operators With Danger On The Doorstep
We screened the universe of large oilfield service customers looking for indications of elevated risk. For oilfield service firms and suppliers, it matters who you are doing business with. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research …
Read More »An Oilfield Water Stock Surged Friday Morning On M&A Chatter
Shares of XYZ water company are ripping Friday morning after… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please …
Read More »In Local West Texas News… This Permian Mini-Documentary Is Worth A Watch
We encountered a mini-doc on the Permian boom this week that is worth a watch if you haven’t seen it yet. Note the prayer before the left turn into 285 traffic at 5:30am… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update …
Read More »Most Agree That Injecting Permian Wastewater Isn’t Going To Get Any Easier… But Is It Getting Harder Yet?
The great local sand rush of 2017-2018 has clearly slowed down here as sand prices have dropped into a trough (we estimate Permian FOB mine prices are down some 65% y/y). What’s going on with operations though? Is more sand still to come? We take a look in this data-driven …
Read More »This Permian Local Frac Sand Metric Probably Peaked In 1Q19
In this update, we chart an important activity metric that probably peaked in the Permian in-basin sand industry during 1Q19. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are …
Read More »Will The 2019 E&P Capex Story End Like 2018? First Quarter Actuals Might Be The Canary In The Coal Mine [Chart Of The Day]
Whelp… this chart doesn’t bode well for oilfield service markets in 4Q19… Are we on track for a repeat of last year’s budget exhaustion woes? There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be …
Read More »2019 Is The 2nd Worst Year Ever For Canadian Drilling
Today we look at Precision Drilling’s recent earnings call and annual shareholders’ meeting commentary for highlights from their outlook on the Canadian drilling market. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a …
Read More »Two Notable Frac People On The Move
In this asset-intensive business, talent shifts are often ignored. But we believe people matter. We also believe that recruiting datapoints often carry implications for oilfield trends, value creation, and competitive dynamics. Here are two notable moves that caught our attention recently… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to …
Read More »Permian Land/Water Title Bout Goes MMA-Style… & Judgement Day Gets Delayed
As the vote on the vacant Texas Trustee seat draws closer (May 22), we continue to publish this “scorecard” documenting the punches thrown by each side. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must …
Read More »It’s Always Darkest Before The Dawn. And It’s Getting Pretty Dark Around The Texas Sandpatch
We provide updated thoughts on the market conditions for frac sand in Texas. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership …
Read More »An Invitation To Join Us To Discuss Oilfield Water Management
This June 21st in Downtown Houston, US oil industry leaders will gather to discuss oilfield water’s evolving business model, market structure, and finance trends. Oilfield Water: Identifying & Financing The Right Solution is the first-ever conference devoted entirely to the business side of oilfield water. This segment now poses structural …
Read More »Pioneer Shares Their Evolving Thoughts On Separating A Critical Path Function
Here’s a look at what they said then and now, showing how their thinking has become more transparent. Other operators will definitely take notice if Pioneer’s water tone starts to shift on divestiture, since the company has long been at the forefront of water management in the tight oil E&P …
Read More »Reports Of Schlumberger’s Hauling Demise Are Greatly Exaggerated…
What’s really going on with Schlumberger’s trucking unit? We discuss the story behind the story here… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, …
Read More »An In-Basin Frac Sand Supplier Downsizes & Cuts Shifts. Not Closing The Door Though, Contrary To Rumor
Market intel on the local frac sand supply stack. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please email …
Read More »Interim Covia CEO “Won’t Be A Caretaker” – Meanwhile A HUGE Contract Buyout, Pricing, & Last Mile Talk…
Big changes at the biggest sand company in the US. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please …
Read More »OxyDarko It Is As Chevron Walks With Their Billion…
As our newsletter this past Tuesday predicted, Chevron walked…. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please email …
Read More »The Last Brady Frac Sand Mine Standing Will Rebrand To Focus On Industrial End Markets
Market intel on the Brady frac sand supply stack. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please email …
Read More »More Electricity Please… Another Pumper Joins The E-Frac Bandwagon
Just days after a customer popped the cork on news that a big frac outfit may be rolling out an electric frac fleet, another pressure pumper has jumped on the e-frac bandwagon. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and …
Read More »Hi-Crush Makes Acquisitions To Bolster Their Execution Capabilities In The Last Mile
Breaking news involving the acquisition of an innovative last mile boutique and a software platform that we’ve been covering for quite some time here at Infill Thinking… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you …
Read More »Horizontal Rigs Down, Tight Oil Production Up [Chart Of The Day]
There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has expired, please email us to discuss our current subscription options at [email protected]. (Current …
Read More »Solaris Sand Silos Inch Toward A Quasi Delivered Solution Model Vs. Rental Only
In the pithy bullet points below, here’s what all frac supply chain folks should know from Solaris’s remarks on their earnings call last week. Their words. Their views. Not ours. But just the stuff we think matters for the broader completions marketplace. There’s a lot more to this story… Login …
Read More »Title Fight Scorecard: Texas Pacific Land Trust vs. Horizon Kinetics
The proxy contest for the vacant Trustee seat on Texas Pacific’s board has only heated up since we first wrote about it here several weeks ago. Over the past week, jabs have been flying left and right, fast and furious. So rather than writing up each swing, we figured a …
Read More »Labor Strike Shuts Down A NWS Plant Temporarily
Here’s the latest on a plant worker strike that is impacting NWS supply. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership …
Read More »More E-Frac Talk… This Time From The Manufacturing Side
The customer of a large frac outfit wasn’t the only one talking excitedly about electric fracs last week. Here’s what the builders said… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. …
Read More »Is The Biggest US Pressure Pumper About To Roll Out An Electric Fleet? A Customer Says Yes…
On their earnings call on May 2, 2019, an E&P management team dropped this little lightning bolt of news: There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new …
Read More »Another Day, Another Water Transaction Fitting An M&A Theme On Our Watchlist
The day after PDC Energy sold their water infrastructure assets to WaterBridge – crossing a deal off our watchlist – another transaction closed that fits with a deal theme we are monitoring – a theme likely to continue with more small M&A deals like this one in the days ahead… …
Read More »US Silica Says It Feels A Little Like The Good Old Days For Northern White
In the pithy bullet points below, here’s what all frac supply chain folks should know from US Silica’s remarks on their earnings call this week. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be …
Read More »Something On The Lighter Side To Breakup EPS Season Monotony…
Earnings season can be pretty dry. As we approach peak 1Q19 reporting season in the oilfield, a stack of earnings releases, transcripts, and recaps are piling up on desks from New York to Midland (ours included, somewhere in between). So we’ll take the humor and lighter moments where we can …
Read More »One Of Five Deals On Infill Thinking’s “Oilfield Water M&A Pipeline Watchlist” Just Happened
About one month ago, we tipped readers off about five potential upcoming deals in the oilfield water M&A pipeline. Today, one of the deals on our watch-list came to fruition. We knew the seller before… now we know the buyer. And it is one of the most aggressive consolidators in …
Read More »Smart Hauling At Big Blue [Silica Valley Series]
This is the fifth installment in our Silica Valley Series which shines the spotlight on an increasingly critical part of the frac value chain: new software solutions in the last mile. A crop of new entrants are improving the frac sand industry’s “mind-muscle connection” on the highways from origin to …
Read More »As Rig Count Drops, Contractors Keep Faith In The Bottom
In our weekly rig count update this week, a highlights from the latest round of remarks made by the leading land rig contractors. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. …
Read More »The “Conflicted Candidate” – A Struggle For Control In The Permian Continues
The battle for control of a critical swath of Permian land and water assets continues to heat up as the incumbents retaliate against recent activist investor information releases… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, …
Read More »When Did Oilfield Water Mania Start? Pinpointing The Inflection In Interest [Chart Of The Day]
If there’s one thing we can say with certainty about the 2019 US shale business it’s that oilfield water management is trending. You’ve probably noticed an uptick in water research here at Infill Thinking (example 1, 2, and 3). And we aren’t alone… check out newly launched oilfieldwater.com. So when …
Read More »Reflecting On A Once-In-A-Lifetime Local Frac Sand Rush [Chart Of The Day]
Price is a powerful lever. And falling sand prices have extended payback periods for new greenfield frac sand plants. What does this mean for interest in building new plants? In this post, we take a data-driven look at the current status of a once-in-a-lifetime silica mining rush. There’s a lot …
Read More »Activist Launches Next Offensive In The Siege Of Texas Pacific Land Trust
An activist investor continues to trade punches with a big Delaware Basin land bank. The proxy battle has big oilfield water and land management implications. Here is analysis on the latest developments in this proxy battle over a vacant trustee seat as the vote looms large… There’s a lot more …
Read More »Interesting MicroProppant Datapoint: Increased Interest In “Blended Hundred Mesh”?
Ultra-fine proppant has been in and out of the news for the past several years without a real inflection in traction in completion design. Will that fact pattern change in the future? We discuss the microproppant outlook and a new datapoint in the story here. There’s a lot more to …
Read More »10 Frac People On The Move
We take a look at some notable comings and goings. The frac talent pool continues to play musical chairs. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new …
Read More »Upcoming Eagle Ford In-Basin Frac Sand Mine Startups To Watch
What can Eagle Ford frac sand customers and suppliers expect for the rest of 2019 on the local sand greenfield front? We’ve rounded up data on the next round of plant startups. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and …
Read More »What Oxy’s Competing Bid Means For The Tight Oil M&A Landscape
When Chevron bid for Anadarko two weeks ago, the first line of Infill Thinking’s newsletter that day underscored the importance of Oxy’s failed bid. “The most interesting headline coming out of today’s Mega-Scale M&A news might actually be Oxy’s failed bid for Anadarko.” – Infill Thinking Headline From 4/12/19 Come …
Read More »Halliburton On RE-bundling, Sand Subsidizing Stages, & The Frac Pricing Bottom [5 Key Takeaways From Their Call]
On Monday, Halliburton was the second oilfield service company to host a conference call so far during the early days of 1Q19 earnings season. Here’s what you need to know from the call if you work in the US completions supply chain. There’s a lot more to this story… Login …
Read More »What’s Next For Emerge?
Today’s news was widely expected. It’s what comes next that’s less clear. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new to Infill Thinking, or your membership has …
Read More »“If Water Was So Important To The Trust…” Trustee Contender Unleashes On Texas Pacific Water Deals In New Video Campaign
With a shareholder meeting to pick the next TPL Trustee one month away, the activist investor’s pick for the vacant seat has launched a video campaign in which he questions the Trust’s land and water strategy. The vote for this seat has big implications for the Permian land and water …
Read More »Checking In On Permian Rig Efficiency. Yep… It’s Still Ugly…
In this update we shine a flashlight beam on one of the Permian Basin’s ugliest metrics relative to the rest of US shale. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. …
Read More »Schlumberger’s Outlook For The US Completions Supply Chain [5 Things To Know In A 5-Minute Read]
In a five-minute read, here’s what completions supply chain pros need to know about Schlumberger’s market commentary Thursday morning… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our research newsletters, you must be a member. If you are new …
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