MIDLAND, TEXAS—When a United States senator makes a call to deliver a keynote, you know your conference’s subject matter is striking a chord. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) helped get the Permian Basin Water in Energy Conference (PBWIEC) off to a good start with his remarks at the dinner and reception held on Wednesday evening, Feb. […]
Spillover
Last month’s issue was called our “Water Issue” (see photo), so we can’t slap that label on this issue, or this coverage, anyway. We’ll just call this “Overflow.” It’s some additional insights we weren’t able to squeeze into the April issue. By Jesse Mullins Some isolated, maybe random, observations about H2O and the tidal […]
To Turn Up the Pressure
The year 2019 began with the the frac industry under pressure as a whole, and pressure pumpers were no exception. A sudden oil price drop in December, coupled with downward pricing impetus from backlogged pipelines and year-end budget exhaustion led to a drop in completions—and a freefall in demand for fracturing crews and frac sand. […]
Water, Water Everywhere in the Permian
This approaching flood will require water treatment instead of an ark. by Paul Wiseman Grizzled veterans of the Oil Patch have a saying that goes something like this: “We produce mostly water and a little bit of oil.” In the days of vertical wells and falling production that issue was not a problem. Scattered […]
The Wall of Water
The rapidly developing water midstream sector promises a “wall of water” for producers. This expanding midstream sector replaces truck trips with more efficient hub-and-spoke gathering and distribution systems. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; Isaiah 35:6, ESV “We are modern day alchemists,” says Wolfcamp Water Partners CEO Toby Darden. […]
From the Chairman: Wrangling Over Water
Various camps that are unfriendly to oil and gas are making water their point of contention. Water. It is a hot topic in Texas now, with drought concerns and high demands coming from many directions. Although hydraulic fracturing accounts for less than 2 percent of statewide water use, hydraulic fracturing and the economic prosperity of […]
A Different Kind of Liquids Play
The search for solutions to the Permian Basin’s water quandaries lead almost invariably to one destination: desalination. Anthony Smith claimed water treatment and re-use will be a critical focus going forward in the Permian Basin. “We have a big opportunity to treat and re-use flowback and produced water on daily basis,” offered Smith, the Permian […]
The Essential Element
Water, the universal solvent, the element that puts the “hydraulic” in hydraulic fracturing—this force of nature that also is a force that drives oil and gas exploration and production—is the hottest commodity in the industry. The No. 1 issue facing the Permian Basin today is not jobs or the economy. It is water. With drought […]