Upstream and E&P

The upstream calculus has changed. Has your strategy?

Capital discipline, Tier 1 depletion, OPEC+ instability, and tightening methane regulation have reset the conditions for upstream value creation. ADI Analytics works with integrated majors, independent operators, NOCs, and investors to make better decisions — on assets, markets, technologies, and transactions.

upstream oil and gas

What keeps upstream leaders up at night

Upstream capital allocation has become harder to get right across every asset class. In North American shale, Tier 1 inventory is thinning and operators moving into lower-quality acreage face materially higher breakevens. In deepwater and offshore, long-lead development economics are increasingly sensitive to cost overruns and price assumptions that looked conservative at FID.

For NOCs, the pressure to balance production targets, fiscal breakevens, and energy transition commitments is reshaping portfolio priorities in ways that standard planning frameworks do not fully capture.

Deal multiples in upstream M&A remain elevated despite the tighter cost environment, with assumptions on reserves, decline rates, and midstream commitments that do not always survive diligence. Methane regulation and leasing policy are adding compliance cost and infrastructure complexity across onshore and offshore operations.

The decisions operators, NOCs, and investors face in this environment carry more downside than they did five years ago.

Who we are

Upstream E&P advisory, built on 15+ years and 1,000+ projects. From Permian basin economics to deepwater development in West Africa, from NOC portfolio rationalization to OFS market entry strategy — ADI Analytics has done the hard analytical work across every major upstream asset class.

What clients engage us to do

Make smarter capital allocation decisions

Basin-level supply forecasts, well performance analytics, demand outlooks for refining, petrochemicals, and exports, crude differentials and takeaway, and scenario analyses that give operators and investors the analytical foundation to commit capital with conviction — or walk away from the wrong deal. Our work spans Permian, Eagle Ford, Haynesville, Bakken, deepwater GoM, pre-salt Brazil, and international plays.

Win in M&A before and after the deal

Asset scouting, buy-side and sell-side diligence — reserve assessments (PDP, PUD, PNP), lifting costs, DCF valuations, and competitive benchmarking — with the sector depth to challenge assumptions that generalist financial advisors accept at face value.

Find cost and operational advantage

Detailed well economics (CAPEX, OPEX, LOE) at regional, asset, and reservoir lifecycle stages; cost estimates for greenfield and brownfield developments; and feasibility studies across upstream projects and initial midstream — benchmarked against peer sets to identify where performance gaps represent real opportunity.

Build strategies that survive price cycles

Corporate strategy, business planning, portfolio rationalization, R&D planning, and country assessment for operators and NOCs — from play identification through asset retirement obligation (ARO) — accounting for commodity price uncertainty, technology evolution, and geopolitical risk.

Assess and commercialize upstream technology

From artificial lift and ESP optimization to reservoir simulation software, secondary and tertiary recovery methods, and IIoT platforms, ADI evaluates upstream technology markets with the operational context that pure market research firms lack.

For organizations seeking rapid access to market intelligence, ADI’s Artificial lift’s next ride blog helps clients understand evolving artificial lift technologies, production optimization strategies, automation trends, and competitive dynamics shaping the upstream oil and gas sector.


Industry experience

Upstream portfolio review for national oil company

ADI Analytics led a two-phase project to support a national oil company’s review of its upstream portfolio, covering conventional, unconventional, offshore, and oil sands assets. The client A national oil company reviewing and reshaping its upstream asset portfolio. The situation The client needed a structured approach to evaluate existing assets, define a target portfolio under […]

Refracturing technologies and strategy assessment

ADI Analytics conducted an assessment of refracturing technologies and strategies to support an oil and gas major’s evaluation of unconventional well refracturing opportunities. The client A major oil and gas company evaluating refracturing opportunities in unconventional plays. The situation The client needed a comprehensive view of refracturing technologies, costs, market practices, and strategic opportunities to […]

Assessing artificial lift methods for U.S. oil plays

ADI Analytics analyzed gas lift solutions for an independent artificial lift firm, assessing technology, market potential, and adoption trends to guide its strategic growth. The client Independent artificial lift service company The situation The client, an independent artificial lift service company, required a comprehensive assessment of their gas lift technology to evaluate its market position, […]

Asset valuation for African oil and gas company

ADI Analytics supported an African oil and gas company in valuing its upstream assets and developing an informed investment strategy. The client An African oil and gas company evaluating upstream asset investment and development options. The situation The client needed valuation support and strategic guidance to assess its asset portfolio and determine a viable investment […]

Benchmarking corporate functions

ADI Analytics conducted a benchmarking study of corporate functions such as sustainability, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and government affairs for a mid-sized oil and gas company. The client A mid-sized oil and gas company seeking to strengthen key corporate functions. The situation The client needed a comparative analysis of its performance across core corporate functions […]

Shale gas strategy development for E&P player

ADI Analytics supported a leading exploration and production (E&P) independent in developing its shale gas strategy, including organizational design, process development, and opportunity evaluation. The client A leading independent E&P company pursuing entry into shale gas. The situation The client needed to establish a strategic foundation, processes, and organization to enter and scale up operations […]

Assessment and identification of promising shale gas plays

An E&P company sought to strategically diversify its portfolio by assessing and identifying high-potential unconventional resources. The client A Canadian exploration and production (E&P) company looking to expand beyond its conventional oil and gas reserves. The situation The client wanted to enter the unconventional resources market, which was, at the time, characterized by high costs […]

India shale gas market assessment

ADI conducted an assessment for an exploration technology licensor to help understand the India shale gas market and develop a strategy for market entry. The client An exploration technology and tools licensor The situation The client wanted to understand the potential of the shale gas market in India to develop a marketing strategy. Despite the […]

ESP cable and sand protection market assessment

Assessing the shift from gas lift to Electrical Submersible Pumps (ESPs) required an evaluation of operational excellence trends and downhole tool durability. ADI modeled the transition from banding to clamping in unconventional wells, accounting for rig time costs and the failure risks associated with high-deviation wellbores. The work navigated the trade-offs between lower upfront CAPEX […]

Reservoir simulation software growth strategy

This strategic planning support assessed a global reservoir simulation market and outlook over a 10-year period. ADI examined the commoditization of black oil simulators and the competitive pressure from GPU-based cloud computing and data analytics alternatives. The work surfaced critical trade-offs between physics-based accuracy and the speed required by a shrinking reservoir engineering workforce. The […]

U.S. upstream oil and gas production IoT market

ADI evaluated the adoption of predictive analytics and IIoT offerings among independent North American operators. The research identified factors impacting adoption and growth and critical solutions to drive adoption in high-producing assets. The client Venture capital firm The situation Need to discern between re-branded automation products and differentiated, value-added IIoT offerings for investment. ADI’s contributions […]

Valuation assessment for onshore E&P assets

This evaluation quantified the valuation potential of an African oil holdings by benchmarking global M&A transaction data for oil sands and other development-stage fields. ADI analyzed the economic trade-offs between as-is asset sales and value-added farm-out scenarios involving significant drilling investments over a three-year horizon. The findings addressed infrastructure limitations and contingent resource uncertainty within […]

Client Results
ADI has very strong experience crafting the work product, and provides the opportunity for feedback through the deep interaction about where the work is going.
Alexander Rozenfeld VP, Shell Technology Ventures

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