Count of active drilling rigs in U.S. increased for the third time in the last four weeks, according to the weekly report of Nov. 7 by Baker Hughes.  The U.S. count was 548 (up 2 in the past week but down 37 or 6.3 percent from 585 reported a year ago). Also as of Nov. […]

BP said last week it will sell minority interests in certain U.S. pipeline assets in Permian Basin and Eagle Ford Shale to investment firm Sixth Street for $1.5 billion.  Reuters reported that the sale is part of a $20 billion divestment program aimed at bringing debt levels down and comes as BP reviews its oil […]

Midland’s Viper Energy expects fourth quarter oil production of 65,000 to 67,000 barrels per day – an increase of about 20 percent in oil production per share compared to 2024Q4.  Total production is forecast at 124,000 to 128,000 boed.  Viper said production in Q3 was 56,087 b/d of oil (108,859 boed). Kaes Van’t Hof, CEO, […]

Another loan from the Texas Energy Fund will be used to construct a natural gas power plant in Ward County in west Texas.  Gov. Greg Abbott announced last week the fifth loan in the program to fund a plant of 1,350 megawatts by Competitive Power Ventures Basin Ranch, which is expected to begin generating power […]

Delta Sands said last week it will construct a new wet sand processing facility near Buffalo in Leon County in east Texas in western Haynesville Shale.  The project is designed to “meet the increasing demand for high-quality, in-basin proppant as natural gas development and infrastructure expansion accelerate across east Texas.”  Delta Sands said capacity will […]

Hearings are in progress in New Mexico before the state’s Public Regulation Commission for the proposed sale of New Mexico Gas Co. to a Louisiana-based private equity firm.  Bernhard Capital Partners proposed the $1.25 billion takeover of the state’s largest natural gas utility from Canadian firm Emera, the current owner of New Mexico Gas that […]

Midland’s Diamondback Energy said this week it is content to hold oil production flat while also being prepared to boost or reduce output if market conditions change significantly.  In Diamondback’s third quarter earnings report Tuesday, Kaes Van’t Hof, CEO, said, “We firmly believe there is no need for incremental oil barrels until there is a […]

The state’s new task force on petroleum theft conducted its first meeting last week in Austin.  Jim Wright, chair of the Railroad Commission of Texas, presided over the meeting Oct. 29 of the new group created in the recent 89th session of the Texas legislature.  Wright told task force members, “Your work in the coming […]

Permian Basin reported an additional active drilling rig for the second time in three weeks in Baker Hughes’ weekly count as of Oct. 31.  Permian now has 251 rigs (up 1 in the past week but down 52 or 17.2 percent from 303 a year ago). Also as of Oct. 31, there were 235 rigs […]

Spring, Texas-based ExxonMobil said Friday its third quarter net production of 4.769 million boed included record output from Permian Basin and Guyana.  In the Permian, ExxonMobil set a production record of nearly 1.7 million boed while continuing to expand the use of proprietary technologies such as its lightweight proppant that improves well recovery by up […]