Cut

Chesapeake Energy Corp., once the most active producer in the U.S. onshore, has reduced its rig count to less than 10 and cut capital spending by more than half as it shores up its balance sheet for the long haul. With a fourth quarter loss of more than $2.2 billion, the No. 2 U.S. natural gas producer also is continuing to negotiate with midstream partners to revise contracts that better fit its downgraded development plans.

Calgary’s top natural gas producer Encana Corp. has curtailed capital spending even more than it had anticipated for 2016 and is laying off 20% more of its workforce as it “relentlessly” pursues cost cutting to remain competitive, CEO Doug Suttles said Wednesday.

Pragmatic about what it can — and cannot — accomplish in the current environment, Devon Energy Corp. has no plans to accelerate exploration and production “in a $30.00 and $2.00 world,” CEO Dave Hager said Wednesday. Top line production is forecast to decline by 6% in 2016, led by a sharp pullback in onshore natural gas fields.

In a sign of just how grim the commodity price environment has become — and how long it’s expected to last — ConocoPhillips cut its quarterly dividend for the first time in at least 25 years on Thursday, while also dropping 10 rigs and slashing capital expenditures (capex) for 2016 as it looks to maintain its balance sheet without racking up additional debt.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. will sharply cut its 2016 capital budget in response to the commodities downturn, electing to preserve its cash flow, await more takeaway capacity in the Appalachian Basin and run one rig company-wide, the company said Tuesday.