Service Companies Ease Operator Efforts: Acquisitions, new technologies are helping the industry meet the challenges in shale development

摘要

Technological advances in hydraulic fracturing combined with key acquisitions to strengthen service offerings have intensified oil and natural gas operations in US shale resource plays. A recent report issued by the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas showed that by 2011 the number of drilling permits issued in the 23 counties that comprise the Eagle Ford Shale had more than doubled from 2007, with oil-directed permits accounting for 52% of the total. In Pennsylvania, shale gas production has ramped up significantly to help boost local employment, according to a report from Wells Fargo Securities. If this trend continues, the firm expects at least a 3% boost in employment in the state by year-end 2020 and even greater gains in shale-rich regions. The shale boom also could provide an important impetus for US manufacturing according to participants at a recent economic summit hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. One estimate predicted that lower-cost energy due to the increased supply of natural gas could result in as many as 1 million new US manufacturing jobs. The sharp drop in natural gas prices worldwide has led to drilling efforts being redirected to areas with oil and condensate and away from dry gas regions. However, an observation about the Eagle Ford Shale in the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank's report can be applied to US shale operations where ever the location:"...the billions of dollars that large energy companies are committing to expand infrastructure for delivering hydrocarbons to the Texas Gulf Coast signal anticipation of strong production from this region for many years."