Upstream

Calgary-based Precision Drilling Corp., one of the largest drilling contractors in North America, is seeing U.S. demand improve, with Canada activity accelerating in natural gas and liquids-rich plays. During a conference call to discuss third quarter results, CEO Kevin Neveu said the Lower 48 rig count already has improved off the “third quarter lows back…

Bolstered by increased oil drilling, particularly in the Permian Basin, the U.S. rig count climbed for a sixth straight week during the period ended Friday (Oct. 23), picking up five units to reach 287, according to the latest data from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR). A six-rig increase in domestic oil drilling offset a one-rig decline…

ConocoPhillips on Monday announced it is taking over Concho Resources Inc. for $9.7 billion in stock, forming a giant in the Permian Basin that would rival the output of the biggest players in the nation’s most productive oilfield. Concho, a Permian pure-play, is the fifth-largest producer by volume in the massive field. The combination marks…

The U.S. natural gas rig count climbed one unit to finish at 74 for the week ending Friday (Oct. 16), while a surge in oil activity saw the overall domestic drilling tally rise by double digits, the latest numbers from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR) show. Driven by a 12-rig increase in oil-directed rigs, the combined…

Oklahoma City-based independent Chaparral Energy Inc. has emerged from bankruptcy for a second time, this time as a privately held company. The Anadarko Basin-focused exploration and production (E&P) firm said it has equitized all $300 million of its unsecured senior notes due 2023, reduced its annual interest expense by more than $25 million and “significantly…

The U.S. rig count surged 13 units higher to finish at 282 for the week ending Friday (Oct. 16) on the strength of gains in oil-directed drilling, according to the latest data from oilfield services provider Baker Hughes Co. (BKR). Twelve oil-directed rigs and one natural gas-directed rig were added in the United States for…

U.S. oil and gas permitting on federal lands jumped 8% in September from August, with Texas operators posting the largest increase since March, according to a monthly tally by Evercore ISI. The firm every month compiles permit data from federal and state sources, which provides a bird’s eye view of where drilling by exploration and…

California’s oil and natural gas industry is pushing back against a report alleging that the state’s largest exploration operator, now mired in bankruptcy, could leave a billion-dollar abandoned well cleanup problem in its wake. The Sierra Club in a recent report labeled top producer California Resources Corp. (CRC), now in Chapter 11, as a stripper…

Editor’s Note: NGI’s Mexico Gas Price Index, a leader tracking Mexico natural gas market reform, is offering the following question-and-answer (Q&A) column as part of a regular interview series with experts in the Mexican natural gas market. This 40th Q&A in the series is with Emily Medina, Non-Resident Fellow at the Energy Policy Research Foundation,…