As of mid-October 2026, U.S. drilling activity continues to firm. Baker Hughes reported its closely watched weekly rotary rig count at 603 for the week ending October 9 (up 5 week-over-week and up 56 year-over-year from 547). WellDatabase’s U.S. Rig Report dated 10.14.2026 showed 608 total rigs (up 6 week-over-week and up 52 year-over-year). Enverus’ […]
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Houston-based Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) delivered its customary pre-earnings operational and realizations snapshot on October 13, 2026, via an 8-K filing of “Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Considerations.” As Reese Energy Consulting noted in a LinkedIn post the same day, it functions as the trailer before the full movie—the formal Q3 results scheduled for after-market close […]
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As of mid-October 2026, U.S. drilling activity is firming. Baker Hughes reported its closely watched weekly rotary rig count at 603 for the week ending October 9 (up 5 week-over-week and up 56 year-over-year). WellDatabase’s operator-level U.S. Operator Rig Report dated 10.11.2026 showed 606 total rigs (down 5 week-over-week but up 32 year-over-year). Enverus’ daily […]
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Isaias had 110 mph winds at 7 a.m. CDT Friday, on the cusp of major-hurricane strength, and is expected to come ashore between Mississippi and the Florida Panhandle tonight or early Saturday. It has already shut in 62.9% of Gulf oil output. Here is what the next one to three weeks could mean at the […]
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After the $58 billion Coterra merger, a $4.2 billion South Texas sale buys time—not a full reset—in a $90-plus oil market. Hat tip to Reese Energy Consulting and Steve Reese for highlighting this, and we will be covering this on a podcast with him soon. Devon Energy’s February all-stock combination with Coterra Energy closed in […]
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The likely first hurricane of 2026 is forecast to cross deepwater fields that pump about 15% of U.S. crude and reach the coast late Friday. The latest NHC track has shifted east toward Alabama and the Florida Panhandle, which lowers the odds for the Mississippi River refining corridor. It does not take Pascagoula, the Colonial […]
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Matador Resources closed its acquisition of EnCap-backed Paloma Permian on October 1, 2026, for $1.255 billion in cash, subject to customary post-closing adjustments. The deal, announced in July at a headline consideration of $1.275 billion, is already beating the company’s own underwriting on the producing wells, while adding a large block of high-quality undeveloped inventory […]
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The deal, exchanged on September 26, 2026, at the Second Azerbaijan International Investment Forum in the presence of President Ilham Aliyev, makes ExxonMobil the operator and still needs parliamentary ratification. It is the first time a U.S. supermajor has taken operatorship of an onshore unconventional program in Azerbaijan. The country has spent three decades built […]
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Baker Hughes printed the cleanest weekly headline: the U.S. rotary rig count rose 4 to 599 for the week ended September 25, 2026, with oil rigs up 3 to 455 and gas rigs up 1 to 135. That is 50 rigs above the year-ago print of 549. WellDatabase’s September 26 report sits almost on top […]
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West Texas Intermediate is trading near $101 a barrel. National gasoline is $4.44 a gallon. Those are the conditions that usually refill rig lines and permit queues. In Colorado, they have not. As of September 17, 2026, Colorado operators had filed only 335 drilling permits over the trailing 24 months. In the last 90 days, […]
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