Permian Basin heavyweight Pioneer Natural Resources Co. is raising its 2020 oil production guidance by 2.5%, but it is keeping most of the oil volumes curtailed during the second quarter offline until commodity prices improve, management said Wednesday.

The Irving, TX-based independent curtailed about 7,000 b/d of net oil production during 2Q2020 and said it expects to keep about 6,000 b/d shut-in amid the current price environment, CEO Scott Sheffield told analysts during the quarterly earnings call.

The curtailed volumes are mainly from Pioneer’s higher cost vertical wells, Sheffield said. He expects “very little” of the 6,000 b/d to come back over time.

Pioneer expects to generate free cash flow (FCF) of about $600 million for the year, and to increase oil output...