Shale companies are bullish on the oil price and expect a big cash payoff next year
US independents stick to the script
Shale producers are cautiously eyeing Opec+ before lifting capex while substantially trimming hedging
Any expectations that booming oil and gas prices might prompt the US shale patch to accelerate drilling heading into 2022 have been largely dashed by the third-quarter results announcements of a swathe of independents. “This industry tried a market share war with Opec before and it did not work out,” says Kaes Van’t Hof, CFO at Texan independent Diamondback Energy. “Why do we not let Opec bring back their spare capacity, stay flat, and see what the future holds in 2023 and beyond?” The sentiment was shared by many independent operators, concerned that lingering economic volatility could still hamper global energy demand and that the Opec+ alliance could quickly renege on its supply pledge. “
Also in this section
14 May 2025
The invisible hand of the market has seen increasing transparency but much more needs to be done to build a better understanding
13 May 2025
A fall in Venezuelan output drives overall production lower, as Saudi Arabia starts to slowly bring more crude to the market
12 May 2025
With the gas industry’s staunchest advocates and opponents taking brutal blows, the sector looks like treading a path of insipid indifference
