What industry leaders expect for 2015

The year 2014 has been a period of not only great profitability for the global upstream industry but also a time of considerable volatility. After remaining consistently above $95/bbl for the first eight months of the year, the spot price for WTI crude at Cushing, Okla., began slipping in early September. That decline continued steadily through November, reaching a level below $75/bbl. Similarly, the Brent spot price fell from a $115/bbl high in the summer to a low of $77/bbl in late November.

These price movements already have begun to have an effect on activity, with several large U.S. operators announcing spending and drilling reductions. Just how much this will curtail shale development remains to be seen. Nor can anyone predict whether OPEC’s short-term decision to protect market share by not reducing quotas will remain intact in the long term. Meanwhile, the service companies and operators continue to make great strides in new technology and efficiency gains, which also factor into the profitability equation.

Looking at these factors and others, the members of World Oil’s Editorial Advisory Board—representing the full spectrum of E&P expertise—present their analysis and predictions for 2015.