Hess Cuts Budget By 16 Percent, Keeps Most Spending In Bakken - Reuters Headline -- January 27, 2015

Link here. In-line with earlier posting on the blog.

Oil and natural gas producer Hess Corp cut its capital budget by 16 percent on Monday, saying it has balanced concerns about slipping crude prices with growth projects in places like North Dakota crucial to the company's future.

The oil industry is grappling with a more-than 60 percent drop in crude oil prices since last June amidst global oversupply concerns, with many producers opting to sharply reduce spending and hope for a price rebound.

In that context, the decision by Hess to only cut 16 percent of its budget was a far-less dramatic step than peers. Continental Resources Inc, for instance, slashed its 2015 budget by nearly 50 percent.

Hess, which operates in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Denmark and Norway, among other places, plans to spend $4.7 billion this year.