The ripples in the global LNG markets induced by geopolitical conflict seemed to have died down and greater import and export capacity coupled with continued growth in the share of renewable energy will result in a relatively stable yet uncertain LNG market in 2024. Key trends to look out for include the following: Global LNG […]
Cost optimization in the shale patch
Leading shale operators from oil majors such as ExxonMobil and Chevron to the E&P independents including ConocoPhillips, Pioneer, Oxy, and Diamondback have committed to growing production without compromising returns and sustainability. Achieving this aspiration will require significant cost optimization where recent ADI research and consulting is showing significant progress by E&P companies. These cost optimization […]
Optimizing crude oil pipeline capacity with drag reducing agents
The U.S. built a little over 3,000 miles of crude oil pipeline capacity during 2018 to 2020 to reach 84,816 miles in 2021, transporting 1.2 billion barrels of crude oil that year. No significant oil pipeline capacity additions have been made since and U.S. oil production averaged 11.9 million barrels per day in 2022 that […]
From Russia with love: Tracking Russia’s fossil fuel market
Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, western countries have spent a lot of time cutting ties with Russia and enacting sanctions to financially pressure them, with a particular emphasis on their fossil fuel industry. With more than a year passing since the start of this war, in this blog, we take look […]
Wax on, wax off: Growth of waxy crude in the Uinta basin
The Uinta basin, located in northeast Utah, is starting to gain some attention from oil and gas players. The basin’s ~120 thousand bpd of production pales in comparison to the Permian’s ~5.6 million bpd produced today. However, production of the basin’s waxy crude has rapidly been increasing (Figure 1), and refiners continue to desire this […]
Snakes aren’t the only thing rattling in Texas
Over the last several years, earthquakes in the Permian basin have increased in both number and intensity. In 2022 there were more than 8x the number of magnitude 3 earthquakes or greater than those that occurred annually in in the years from 2015 to 2019. (Figure 1). In fact, two of the five largest tremors […]
2023 Refining Industry Outlook: A year of recalibration
Going into this past year, 2022 was meant to be the beginning of the end for petroleum refiners, but another spanner was thrown in the works. With most countries coming out of lockdown and entering post-COVID life, the expectations were that a lot of the trial and tribulations of the past two years would leave […]
2023 LNG Outlook: Will the sugar rush subside?
The global LNG market was influenced by some unprecedented factors in 2022. Europe significantly grew their LNG imports driving LNG prices to astounding highs. U.S. emerged as the top exporter in spite of an emergency shutdown at Freeport LNG. High shipping rates also plagued LNG markets along with limited supply and growing sustainability pressures. All […]
2023 Upstream Oil & Gas Outlook: Tight supply and little growth
Upstream oil and gas fared well in 2022. Despite oil prices falling over 30% from their summer highs, oil and gas prices remain elevated, with WTI prices over $70 per barrel and natural gas at prices not seen since 2008. Net income in 2022 is expected to double from 2021 for oil and gas producers, […]
2022 Midstream Outlook: Challenging times ahead
Midstream companies will cut back on capital spending in 2022 significantly by over 50% from 2021 The projections for capital spending in 2022 by large midstream players show a consistent trend of cutting back from 2021 spending. For example, Kinder Morgan expects to cut $1 billion in capital spending while Enbridge has announced a capex […]