As long as there are oil wells—greenfield and brownfield—there will be a need for downhole tools. That much is unchanging. What is up for grabs is the kind, the number, and the speed at which they’re needed. For Ruger Oil Tools, the times they are a’changin’. For Mesquite Oil Tools, the more things change, the […]
Interviewing Candidates
How do you pick candidates to interview, and what is the correct interviewing process? This is a highly complex process, and what follows are best practices. Do what you want until you must defend yourself. Here are my recommendations. First, post your job on your Human Resources Information System (HRIS) platform, such as Workday, Paycom, […]
Too Much, Too Fast?
“Go to the ant,” suggested King Solomon, because even without a company man, the ant “stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.” Retired veteran oilman Mike Shellman admits that he is a contrarian when it comes to how fast and hard to push production from new wells. And he avoids shale […]
Timing is Everything
Timing is everything. In January of this year, a petition for review was filed with the Texas Supreme Court titled Scout Energy Management, LLC v. Taylor Properties, in which Scout asks the Court overturn an opinion issued out of the 7th Court of Appeals in Amarillo that involved the interpretation of a shut-in royalty clause […]
Honoring One of Our Own
On Jan. 18, the Permian Basin Petroleum Association gathered in the sumptuous confines of the Midland Petroleum Club and made a special occasion of honoring the lifetime achievements of one of the Permian Basin’s great leaders and businessmen: Charles Richard “Dick” Sivalls. The worthy honoree was recognized as the Permian Basin Petroleum Association’s Top Hand […]
Shifting Sand
As prevalent as a PropX box. While that line, above, is not a commonplace figure of speech in the Basin, it might as well be. The PropX box is everywhere. That’s because sand is everywhere—or at least it is going everywhere. And usually on the road that you are driving on. When God put the […]
Mobility Matters. That’s Why the PBPA Matters.
Occasionally I travel to places outside of the Permian Basin. I know, I know. You might be asking, why would I ever leave the oasis that is Midland, Texas? Well, I figure if our oil has mobility around the world, I guess I can do a bit of traveling too. When I do travel, I […]
Where the Water Goes
An oil well produces three things: oil, natural gas and (mostly) water. All three of those things have to have somewhere to go in order for the well to operate, and right now only two of them are profitable. The last is working its way up from being a nuisance to being a useful byproduct, […]
R-e-s-p-e-c-t
Let’s launch into our subject by posing a question: How is today’s workforce different from that of any other generation in our industry? Back in the day, you just did exactly as you were told, without deviation. Whether you were a person new to the industry or a seasoned veteran, you understood that no explanation […]
Information Technology Flips a Switch
From its beginning in simply reporting when a pump shuts down, to now predicting that event before it happens, information technology has greatly evolved in the last 10 years—and that evolution is only getting faster. No longer is it enough to have the data—it’s necessary to maximize it. Operations like artificial intelligence, machine learning, data […]
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