Shale Oil

According to IHS Markit data compiled by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), ExxonMobil Corp.'s production per well in its Delaware Basin acreage fell from an average of 635 b/d in 2018 to 521 b/d in 2019, the last full year with available data.

S&P Global Platts Analytics reports that over $31.1B in merger and acquisition (M&A) activity has been agreed upon in the US shale industry so far this year, compared to $4.1.1B in M&A activity for the entirety of 2020.

Despite US shale producers continuing to exercise capital spending discipline despite rising oil prices and demand as they emphasize shareholder returns, output from the Permian Basin is still set to grow next month.

Despite the ongoing rise in oil demand and prices, US shale firms are continuing to show capital-spending restraint and remain focused on lowering costs to boost free cash flow and shareholder returns via increased dividends and stock buybacks.

The independent US oil producer reported average upstream output, excluding Libya, of 1.488MM boe/d in 1Q, which was up 16% from 1Q 2020 output.

Equinor and Hess Corp. have both announced the sale of assets within the Bakken shale play in North Dakota.

According to S&P Global Platts Analytics, drilling activity in the Eagle Ford and Permian Basin shale plays picked up on rising oil prices and demand.

The use of electric fracking (e-frac) equipment within US shale plays remains limited due to the high costs associated with e-frac equipment relative to diesel-powered fracking equipment as US shale producers have severely cut spending in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among all the shale formations in the country, the Permian Basin stands out in terms of productivity and export potential.

According to consultancy Enverus, merger and acquisition (M&A) activity within the US E&P space jumped five-fold from $600MM in 1Q 2020 to $3.4B on increasing consolidation within the US shale space.