Stuttering outlook for Gulf of Mexico
Despite ever-rising oil and gas production, drilling activity is looking weaker
After a challenging 2018 that saw project momentum in the US Gulf of Mexico (GOM) falter amid weaker oil prices, the outlook for drilling activity in 2019 appears diminished. The November price declines could have a chilling effect on investment, amid rising project costs. It marks a contrast with the situation in early 2018, when oil prices were high and deep layoffs, sustained cost-cutting, new technology, and optimisation had stripped the industry down to lean and mean. Sustained relief on commodity prices, which rose above $60/bbl and even above $70/bbl, was felt and welcomed. Also welcomed were changes in the US tax landscape. The December 2017 tax restructuring reduced corporate income
Also in this section
8 April 2025
Oil’s resilience and gas’ growth will continue to define the global energy mix into 2050, according to Petroleum Economist analysis, but that does not have to spell doom and gloom for sustainability
8 April 2025
Gulf Energy to provide AIQ with exclusive access to its proprietary datasets and industry-leading documents. ENERGYai is already trained on petabytes of operational data from ADNOC, and this agreement will provide the solution with access to even greater quantities of relevant, high-quality industry information
7 April 2025
Imminent midstream additions in the Vaca Muerta set the stage for sharp jump in upstream growth
4 April 2025
With extreme weather, refinery closures and geopolitical uncertainty reshaping supply and demand, traders must look beyond headline price movements to understand the actual state of the market
