Page 15 - AsianOil Week 48 2020

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MEOG: Gulf upstream uptick NorthAmOil: Shale producers pivot
A string of announcements last week show that US shale producers are reported to be turning
operators are returning to action across the Mid- their attention to natural gas amid projections
dle East despite uncertainty about the future of that gas prices will rise higher than oil prices.
the OPEC+ agreement. This comes as OPEC meets this week, amid jit-
Maintaining the momentum following the ters over the impact any rise in global production
usual post-ADIPEC flurry, Abu Dhabi National could have on crude prices.
Oil Co. (ADNOC) announced that it had agreed Earlier this month, EOG Resources, one of
a $519mn extension to the world’s largest ever the US’ largest shale producers, said in Novem- These gas wells,
seismic survey, currently being carried out by ber that it would start selling gas from 15 new
Chinese firm BGP. The survey, which is being wells next year from a newly discovered field in targeting the
shot both onshore and offshore, will now cover Texas holding 21 trillion cubic feet (595bn cubic
around 82,000 square km, with ADNOC look- metres) of gas. Eagle Ford and
ing to continue its prolific exploration form These gas wells, targeting the Eagle Ford and
following the previous week’s discovery of 24bn Austin Chalk plays, are reported to be as profita- Austin Chalk
barrels of oil. ble as the company’s best oil wells. plays, are
In Iraqi Kurdistan, London-listed Genel Also in November, Apache said it planned
Energy announced first oil from its Sarta field, to complete three Texas wells after boosting its reported to be as
with an expansion planned for early 2021. third-quarter US gas production by 15% over
Despite having been delayed because of issues the second quarter and 6% over the same period profitable as the
related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pan- of 2019, and Continental Resources recently
demic, first oil comes less than two years after shifted drilling rigs to gas from oil in Oklahoma. company’s best
the company acquired its 30% working interest Both US oil and gas rig counts have been rising oil wells.
from Chevron. Elsewhere in the semi-autono- in recent weeks after bottoming out over the sum-
mous region, Russia’s Gazprom Neft reached mer. Country-wide gas rig counts are up 13% since
total cumulative production of 32mn barrels July, and over that period the number of active rigs
from its Sarqala field, where output is anticipated has increased 25% in the Haynesville shale and 8%
to increase to 32,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the in the Marcellus – both gas plays.
first half of 2021. Part of the reason US gas prices are improv-
Meanwhile, drilling work is set to resume ing is that associated production of natural gas
offshore Oman this month, with Masirah Oil from oil-rich regions has fallen as shale drillers
Ltd acquiring a jack-up from Shelf Drilling to scaled back activity earlier this year. Indeed, the
further develop the Yumna oilfield and explore US Energy Information Administration (EIA)
the wider potential of Block 50, where a previ- projected in mid-November that nationwide
ous report estimated resources at more than 4bn gas production would contract again in both
barrels. November and December.

If you’d like to read more about the key events If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping
shaping the Middle East’s oil and gas sector then the North American oil and gas sector then please click
please click here for NewsBase’s MEOG Monitor. here for NewsBase’s NorthAmOil Monitor.™

Week 48 03•December•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P15