Low Commodity Prices: Redrawing Midstream Financial Picture

摘要

As energy commodity prices continued flat-lining at the start of 2016, a favored financial tool of the midstream oil and natural gas sector — the master limited partnership (MLP) -was under siege, buffeted by skeptical Wall Street analysts and wary unitholders alike. A financial staple that had helped nurture growth in the oil and gas midsection during the past 30 years of cyclical commodity prices, MLPs have provided the ability to avoid corporate taxes and thus reduce the cost of capital. That spelled growth for corporate players in the midstream space who anxiously lined up to house many of their assets in MLPs.