Outlook 2001

Industry activity picked up in 2000 as oil/gas prices rebounded. The question on everyone's mind at year-end was, How long will it last? Several experts offer their opinions and World Oil Editors forecast drilling activity to give helpful insight.

Activity Reviews, Predictions

Crude oil price analysis (Matthew Simmons, Simmons & Co. International)
Washington in 2001 (William Garland, Contributing Editor)
E&P spending forecast (Salomon Smith Barney)

Interpretive Features, Statistics

U.S. drilling (World Oil forecast/surveys/API)
U.S. rig count (Baker Hughes)
U.S. oil production (API/DOE)
Producing oil wells, U.S. (Surveys)
Producing gas wells, U.S. (Surveys)
U.S. drilling/producing depths (Surveys)
U.S. oil/gas reserves (DOE/EIA)
International drilling (Surveys/World Oil forecasts)
International offshore drilling (Surveys)
International production (Surveys)

Other Features

Natural gas series: North American gas outlook.
Leonard Parent (The Gas Price Report/Gas Price Index) overviews U.S., Canada and Mexico supply/demand scenarios.

Technology at Work.
World Oil's popular quarterly presentation wraps up advances that have helped operators/contractors improve operations. Tentatively selected articles include: 1) End-of-coiled tubing detector (AnTech Ltd.); 2) New Liquid Stone cement applications (BJ Services); 3) Thermal desorption process for treating oil-based muds (Brandt); 4) Expandable sand screen with improved expansion system (Weatherford Int'l); and 5) Applied technology case history (Petroleum Technology Transfer Council, PTTC).

Well control.
Cudd Well Control describes design of two-relief wells drilled from jackups offshore India to intersect and kill two blowouts on a production platform.

U.S. Gulf operations.
ABS concludes its report on several major assistance programs it offers potential entrants to upcoming FPSO/FPS markets in the Gulf and elsewhere.