In some large tight oil well AFEs these days, the frac sand line item can be as much as a quarter of well cost. Of course there is a lot more involved in shale development capex than just individual well costs. So for this chart of the day exercise, we …
Read More »Pioneer The Permian Pure Play: 2018 Capex Will Be 10% Above Adjusted 2017 Spending
We break down Pioneer’s Permian news from yesterday evening. 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 »Oil Price Strength Will Drive Stealth Budget Increases, If Not Overt Outspending In Shale
We examine one strategy that we think will be a common way for E&P operators to essentially increase spending without appearing to be reacting to higher oil prices this year. There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read this update and receive our …
Read More »As Oil Prices Run, These 8 Operators Face A Big Test Of Their New Year’s Resolution
Ironically, all the recent talk of restraint by tight oil operators is a contributing factor to the recent crude oil price rally. In turn, rising oil prices will put to the test this newfound US operator resolve to reign in the willy nilly spending of prior upcycles. With WTI an …
Read More »Cherry Picked Datapoints From A Bevy Of New O&G Presentations This Week
Since New Year’s Day, ~40 fresh IR decks have hit the wires from the O&G industry… and that doesn’t even include downstream or midstream. The presentation dump came ahead of the year’s first significant O&G investor conference this week. We have cherry-picked the following datapoints with 2018 implications from public …
Read More »Is It Really Different This Time? [Chart Of The Day]
We believe the recent surge of returns-focus rhetoric from E&Ps is having a considerable impact on consensus expectations for US shale E&P spending. This was evident in our recent survey, where participants expressed a bullish view on y/y oil price trends yet waxed conservative on the spending outlook. In this …
Read More »Reading The 2018 US E&P Capex Tea Leaves As Operators “Apologize” For Growing
This week, E&P management teams talked with investors about the big picture framework and mindset this budget season. We recap the key takeaways from the key players and review the overarching themes of 2018 budget season and what this means for oilfield service contractors. There’s a lot more to this …
Read More »Tailwinds Form Behind 2018 E&P Capex Budgets
The following brief analytical editorial was excerpted from our twice-weekly newsletter on Tuesday October 31, 2017. 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 …
Read More »First Look At 2018 US E&P Capex & Rig Count: Flat At The Current Strip?
While the majors talk capex in terms of multi-year programs, the Independents that drive the Lower 48 drilling & completion markets are usually reticent to discuss specific year-ahead capex details until budget season (late-4Q / early 1Q). Last week an Independent talked specifics on their 2018 development plan – one …
Read More »Frac Sand Is A Substitute For Wells And Rigs. Lower 48 Surface Sprawl Is Going Underground [Charts]
Is frac sand replacing rigs? It would appear so in the US onshore recovery. As unconventional drilling and completion science evolves, the industry’s surface footprint per barrel of oil produced is shrinking. A growing sub-surface footprint (which we can measure with sand) is replacing the surface sprawl. With the US onshore …
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