shale oil

The source of gummy, damaging polymer gunk that has flowed from Oklahoma oil wells is becoming clear, and one of the lessons learned is that shale plays require petroleum engineers to learn more about chemistry.

Based on the early results from mass shut-ins of shale wells, it did not harm long-term production and it paid a short-term dividend with more oil flowing in the days after restarting.

The good news is 95% of the oil companies in Texas are expected to survive 2020, which means there is a lot of bad news to endure.

The Permian Basin is now influencing the upstream water market on the way down, while many questions swirl around the implications of unprecedented shut-ins.

A technical synopsis of major considerations for unconventional wells facing prolonged shut-ins. The review includes deciding factors for kill fluid selection and risks of incompatible fluid mixing.

As tight-oil producers move to curtail production, hard-to-answer questions are being raised about how shuttered wells will come back. The issue reveals key uncertainties about the delicate flow paths that define unconventional reservoirs.

The shale industry could shoulder 65% of $100-billion 2020 global E&P spending cut. Can oilfield services providers afford to cut their fees further to prop up hard-hit operators?

As capital markets dry up and shale producers look for pathways to growth, oil and gas data analytics firm Enverus predicts the US sector will see a “surge” in mergers and acquisitions in 2020.

The formula for value in a shale play used to be simple, lease acreage in the best quality rock based on Tiers cover large areas. That standard is fading as it has become obvious that the rock is highly variable and the drilling and completion designs are just as important.

Reduced investment in US shale will continue to weigh down the global oilfield services market through 2020.