U.S. shale oil production is forecast to rise for the eighth consecutive month, climbing 112,000 bbl/d to 5.585 MMbbl/d in August, the U.S. Energy Department said in a report July 17.
The increase comes amid market concerns that rising shale output will dampen OPEC’s efforts to curb a global supply glut.
The U.S. shale production level would be the highest since record-keeping began in 2007, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) monthly drilling productivity report.
The Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico, the largest U.S. oil field, is expected to produce 2.535 MMbbl/d, up 64,000 bbl/d from July, the EIA said.
In Texas’ Eagle Ford, oil production is forecast to rise 27,000 bbl/d to 1.387 MMbbl/d, the most since February 2016. Meanwhile, in North Dakota’s Bakken, oil output is set to rise by 3,500 bbl/d to 1.043 MMbbl/d, the most since November, the forecast showed.
Meanwhile, U.S. natural gas production was projected to increase to a record 52.9 Bcf/d in August. That would be up more than 0.8 Bcf/d from June and also the eighth monthly increase in a row.
The EIA projected gas output would increase in all of the big shale basins in August, with the biggest increase from gas in the Marcellus Formation.
Output in the Marcellus Formation in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, the biggest shale gas play, was set to climb to 19.8 bcfd in August, a fifth consecutive increase.
EIA also said producers drilled 1,026 wells and completed 872 in the biggest shale basins in June, an increase of 154 so called drilled uncompleted wells (DUCs) from May. That raises the total to 6,031, the highest level of DUCs on record.
Recommended Reading
Marathon Oil Declares 1Q Dividend
2024-04-26 - Marathon Oil’s first quarter 2024 dividend is payable on June 10.
No Silver Bullet: Chevron, Shell on Lower-carbon Risks, Collaboration
2024-04-26 - Helping to scale lower-carbon technologies, while meeting today’s energy needs and bringing profits, comes with risks. Policy and collaboration can help, Chevron and Shell executives say.
Canadian Railway Companies Brace for Strike
2024-04-25 - A service disruption caused by a strike in May could delay freight deliveries of petrochemicals.
Talos Energy Expands Leadership Team After $1.29B QuarterNorth Deal
2024-04-25 - Talos Energy President and CEO Tim Duncan said the company has expanded its leadership team as the company integrates its QuarterNorth Energy acquisition.
Energy Transfer Ups Quarterly Cash Distribution
2024-04-25 - Energy Transfer will increase its dividend by about 3%.