Upstream

Increased drilling activity in the Permian Basin and in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) helped lift the U.S. rig count seven units higher to 528 for the week ended Friday (Oct. 1), according to the latest numbers from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR). The total number of natural gas-directed rigs operating domestically was unchanged for the…

U.S. independents Cimarex Energy Co. and Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. have completed their closely watched merger, bringing together more than 700,000 net acres across the Marcellus Shale and the Permian and Anadarko Basins. The previously announced transaction was completed on Friday after both companies’ shareholders approved it earlier this week. The combined company operates…

Oil production in Mexico averaged 1.62 million b/d in August, down from 1.67 million b/d in July and 1.63 million b/d in August 2020, according to the data from upstream regulator Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos (CNH). Output by national oil company Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) fell from 1.61 million b/d in July to 1.55 million b/d…

Drilling activity in China is expected to intensify over the next five years as the nation’s producers are under pressure to boost domestic natural gas and oil production and reduce reliance on imports. According to a recent report by Rystad Energy, China’s top three national oil companies (NOCs) are expected to spend about $123 billion…

U.S. exploration and production (E&P) companies are completing wells at record rates, outpacing new wells by nearly 250 a month, according to Raymond James & Associates Inc. Analyst John Freeman in a note to clients Monday said the domestic count of drilled but uncompleted wells, aka DUCs, has dropped by nearly 3,300 from nearly 9,000…

U.S. natural gas drilling activity eased lower during the week ended Friday (Sept. 24), while ongoing recovery in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) helped lift the overall domestic rig count higher for the period, according to updated numbers from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR). Ten oil-directed rigs were added in the United States for the week,…

Propelled by rising activity in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) amid the recovery from Hurricane Ida-related impacts, the U.S. rig count rose nine units to 521 for the week ended Friday (Sept. 24), according to Baker Hughes Co. (BKR). Ten oil-directed rigs were added in the United States for the week, offsetting a one-rig decline…

Tourmaline Oil Corp., Canada’s largest natural gas producer, plans to boost spending and pull forward some drilling in the Montney Shale originally scheduled for next year into the final weeks of 2021. The company credited “materially reduced drilling times,” particularly at its northeastern British Columbia assets, with the decision.  Tourmaline reported a 20% reduction in…

Chevron Corp. and Enterprise Products Partners LP are evaluating possible projects to store carbon emissions from their U.S. business operations in the Midcontinent and on the Gulf Coast. Chevron U.S.A. Inc., through its Chevron New Energies division, has a framework in place with a subsidiary of Houston-based Enterprise to evaluate opportunities to store carbon dioxide…