The Texas upstream oil and gas economy remained in contraction through the first nine months of the year, with the near-term outlook murky, according to a top state energy group.

The Texas Alliance of Energy Producers (TAEP), which serves more than 3,000 members, said the Texas Petro Index (TPI) for September indicated the exploration and production (E&P) activity index declined for the 19th straight month, to 145.4 from 150.4 in August. The monthly E&P index also was down by 27.5% year/year.

The TPI peaked at 213.8 in February 2019, but it has lost nearly one-third (32%) of its value since then, TAEP noted. The all-time record high was 313.9 in November 2014.

“The Texas Petro Index shows that the upstream oil and gas economy in Texas was in a state of contraction for...