Industry at a Glance

Olivia Kabell, Associate Editor

Oil prices saw a slight recovery in October, though they remain below the earlier spike in August oil prices.  Still, prices are expected to continue a slow but steady recovery through November when file data are compiled. Of the three major crudes, WTI made the largest recovery, boasting a 9.6% jump to $71.99/bbl in October.  Meanwhile, Brent and Dubai Fateh posted more modest increases of 2.2% and 1.8% respectively, for final averages of $75.63/bbl and $74.70/bbl in October. 

U.S. monthly average production rose slightly alongside recovering oil prices, reaching an average of 13.45 MMbpd in October.  Year-on-year production gains persist as well, with 1.9% gain compared with production a year ago. In wider global production, crude and condensate output averaged 81.82 MMbpd in July, up 0.3% from the 81.38-MMbpd figure for June. The July figure is running 0.3% lower than the 2023 annual average.  

U.S. natural gas prices dipped slightly in October, falling to $2.20/MMbtu.  The 12-month average fell to $2.20/MMbtu also—a larger drop compared to the month to month shifts in gas prices.  Even so, EIA estimates suggest that the falling prices will reserve course during the winter months, with higher demand for fuel. 

U.S. drilling activity marked a mere two-unit loss from September to October, with fluctuations across the country offsetting larger changes to the count. Rig number declines occurred in California, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Utah. These losses were countered by gains in Oklahoma, Wyoming and Texas. 

Drilled but uncompleted wells in the U.S. once again declined slightly overall, with a continued year-on-year decline (-7.2%).  The total well count came to 3,048, with a 17-well loss from September to October. For individual regions, historical trends generally held true, save for a few exceptions. The Bakken and Eagle Ford once again led with the largest losses year-on-year at 22.4% and 33.9%, respectively, while more modest declines could be found in Appalachia (-10.2%) and the remaining Lower 48 states (-4.4%). The Haynesville posted a mild increase (1.4%) in DUCs, but the Permian stood out this month with a 10.9% y-o-y uptick in drilled-but-uncompleted wells. 

International rig counts posted a 21-unit drop in October, largely thanks to declines in onshore rigs, interrupting a brief trend of increase from earlier this year.  Major unit losses came mostly from the Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Africa regions, focused largely on onshore units, though some offshore declines occurred, as well. Meanwhile, the Europe and Middle East regions saw increases, once again focused onshore, with some slight offshore decreases.