E&P transcripts we’ve seen from recent investor conferences have been pretty upbeat all things considered. Why? Oil prices are sub-$45 and under pressure. Well, shale has some tricks up its sleeve that allow it to keep going, and we break them down here. There’s a lot more to this story… …
Read More »Marcellus Scale – A Glance At The EQT / Rice Deal From A Well-Site Demand Perspective
Yesterday morning, EQT consolidated the Marcellus Shale by acquiring Rice Energy for $6.7bn in a deal that creates the largest natural gas producer (>3Bcfpd) in the US. The deal is expected to close in 4Q17. The combination and new strategic direction for the combined operator has material implications for the …
Read More »Breakneck Permian Rig Count Growth Is Cooling Off Now
Unconventional drilling in the Permian’s Midland and Delaware Basins has been increasing at a breakneck pace since 4Q16. Horizontal rigs going back to work on Midland and Delaware formations alone account for 1/3rd of the total increase in Lower 48 rig count since September 30, 2016. Over the past five weeks or …
Read More »Bifurcated Permian Basin Growth Will Set Off Redundant Construction Booms
We are all talking about the Permian Basin a ton these days. But is this too general now? As the entire industry descends on the region, it has bifurcated into two distinct geo-markets from a surface perspective… There’s a lot more to this story… Login to see the full update… To read …
Read More »I’ll Take The Worst Neighborhoods In O&G For $200, Alex
The hardest sell in the entire O&G industry right now is without question a newbuild offshore rig order. Demand for offshore newbuilds is actually negative. Contractors continue to push out delivery dates, in some cases paying up to avoid taking delivery. With little visibility on a recovery, shipyards are being forced to …
Read More »The Sharpest Drilling Rebound In US History Is Happening Right Now
The US land drilling market is exiting the worst downturn in history. Why not follow that with the sharpest rebound ever? That is exactly what is happening now. Since bottoming about 30 weeks ago, the US rig count has increased 60%. The 1985 recovery outpaced this one for 25 weeks before falling back. The only …
Read More »The O&G Job Creation Engine Is Firing Again
In the US, the O&G industry has begun to hire staff again for the first time in two years. We snapped this encouraging photo in front of a Halliburton completions yard while touring the Permian Basin in early-December. Source: InfillThinking.com Given what we know about the ongoing recovery and a …
Read More »A Deal Before Year-End: Patterson-UTI Pays Top Dollar For Seventy Seven Energy
Land drilling / pressure pumping hybrids Patterson-UTI and Seventy Seven Energy have agreed to join forces as 2016 draws to a close. Patterson-UTI will purchase Seventy Seven Energy for $1.76bn in an all-stock deal that includes the assumption and repayment of $336mm of net debt. This deal isn’t a bargain, as …
Read More »What Fourth Quarter Slump?
Back in October, the North American land market was bracing for a seasonal slowdown into year-end. Here’s the warning Halliburton CEO Dave Lesar issued on a conference call about 6 weeks ago: “Based on current customer feedback we remain cautious around customer activity due to holiday and seasonal weather-related downtime. Our customers …
Read More »Could Today’s Land Drilling Leader Become Tomorrow’s Laggard?
Helmerich & Payne’s FlexRig3s have made the company the best-in-class US land driller for a decade. Ask any analyst who the best land driller with the best fleet is and they’ll say H&P almost unanimously. But will that always be the case? Now for the first time in a decade, management is having …
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