Let me disabuse you of a notion. Cheap gasoline isn’t going to “hurt” renewables. No renewable is really standing on its own. It is directly subsidized unlike drilling for oil or even refining…Depletion Allowance is not a “subsidy” for big oil. It is simple depreciation. Grandma pays taxes on her mineral rights and the only deduction she gets… Read More »

2020 was a rough year for the oil business. The bloated natural gas production associated with attempting to extract oil from wells better defined as gas wells created a glut of natural gas while making the nation a net exporter of oil.  That disappeared into the abyss when gas prices in west Texas collapsed into negative territory followed… Read More »

There is a weird but fundamental relationship between politics and oil. The Democrats hate oil and believe that it should basically be eliminated permanently in favor of ‘green’ energy (whatever that is.) The Republicans promote the oil business as necessary and vital to the economy. Yet the industry often benefits from Democratic policies while Republican policies often end… Read More »

We have such a glut in natural gas I do not see a return to the prices of fifteen years ago. Oil, on the other hand, will necessarily be in high demand. With the so-called “Tier 1” acreage being oil doesn’t mean it is all oil. From my calculus for a number of wells, it seems that these… Read More »

What does Biden promise the oil business? It is hard to say explicitly since he talks out of both sides of his mouth. He said he’d ban fracking. In debate with Trump, he denied it, challenging Trump to prove it. So Trump did, and posted his exact words. Biden otherwise claimed a slow “transition” away from oil and… Read More »

The Public Trust Doctrine was an issue the Nevada Supreme Court recently adjudicated. Had it succeeded every mineral owner and every person who holds water rights or even has a water well, could have been at risk.   But it can be expected in the future that we see more legal challenges to the ownership of water rights,… Read More »

The Green New Deal (GND) is coming and with it the poorest in the nation will suffer. Simple fact. Market forces rule. They always rule. Stifle competition and pick winners and losers and everyone suffers. The GND will pick electric vehicles over gas driven ones without recognizing the problems it creates and it will, once again, be blamed… Read More »

Today it is argued that the fossil fuel industry is “dirty”. Perhaps but all energy sources will be extracted from the earth or those extracted from the sun will rely heavily upon materials that are mined, such as lithium and silica. Construction requires the use of heavy machinery, almost all of which is fueled by diesel or gasoline… Read More »

Geologists, landmen, and engineers often work for an over-riding royalty interest (ORRI.) As one geologist recently told me, “If I can ever get rid of this ORRI, I’ll never sign another.” What is an “over-ride”? In lieu of a direct payment, the owner of an ORRI may elect to earn a percentage of the well. This used to… Read More »

The Fayetteville Shale was the second shale gas play to succeed. The Barnett Shale proved the technology to work. And in doing so, opened a Pandora’s Box of horizontal shale plays dependent upon the slick water frack; or early in the play, nitrogen and carbon dioxide fracks. Some failed while others succeeded spectacularly. The Caney, a shale situated… Read More »