One question we’ve been asked is: “If breakeven prices average ~$40/bbl and oil prices are $65/bbl doesn’t this imply tremendous profitability for the industry and mean that upstream investment should grow enormously?” In this podcast we discuss the importance of breakeven price in an operator’s investment decision.
Episode 62: The Day the Oilfield Changed
In this episode we discuss the development of offshore drilling and development, offshore production as a percent of global oil output, cannons, and offshore territorial limits.
Episode 61: Testing, Testing…
Production testing services is a little-followed segment of the oilfield services industry. In this podcast we discuss the reasons for conducting production tests, the different types of production testing services, and the factors that drive this market.
Episode 60: What’s Ahead for the Directional Drilling Services Market?
Over the past decade directional drilling services have moved from primarily being a non-US, offshore-oriented market to one that is predominately focused on the US onshore. In this podcast we discuss the use of conventional systems versus rotary-steerable technology, as well as developments in signal transmission technology.
Episode 59: Saudi, Russia Long-Term Alliance
Saudi Arabia recently disclosed that it is in discussions with Russia about replacing their short-term production agreement with a long-term alliance so as to stabilize the oil market. In this episode we discuss what this implies about their assessment of future shale oil production growth both in the US and abroad, and operators’ capital discipline.
Episode 58: What I Learned Last Week in the Permian Basin
In this episode we discuss Richard’s observations from his recent trip to West Texas, including: The rate and extent to which the Permian market has switched to box-type sand deliver; Personnel turnover and how far workers are commuting to their jobs in the Permian; and Will drilling practices lead to production problems?
Episode 57: A Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On, or, what Michael Bennett and a Frac Pump have in common
You’ve probably heard it; you might have wondered it: in this episode we answer the question, “Why doesn’t fracking cause earthquakes?”
Episode 56: The Day the Oilfield Changed
In this episode we discuss how a 1970 agreement between Occidental Petroleum, led by Dr. Armand Hammer, and the government of Libya, led by Muammar Gaddafi, set OPEC on course to become a force in the world oil market.
Episode 55: US Shale Well Productivity
US shale well initial productivity (IP) more than doubled from the start of 2014 through the end of 2016, but has fallen about 10% over the past year. In this podcast, John and Richard discuss the factors that increased IP from 2014 to 2016 but which caused IP to decline in 2017.
Episode 54: Questions from the Field
In this episode, all things drill bits. We answer questions we’re hearing from the field including: What are the different types of drill bits and when do you use them? Are drill bits rented or sold? What is the share of the bit market in terms of revenues? We’ll also dive into Spindletop and and the origin of the Sharp-Hughes Tool Company.