Consolidation Talk -- January 24, 2022

From the blog, January 13, 2022:

There are three reasons given for rig counts not increasing:

• operators showing restraint; focused on free cash flow, not growth;
• supply chain shortages impacting oil industry;
• labor shortage.

• Consolidation: so, if operators want to grow, how do they do it? Simply buying land / mineral rights won't be enough. They need to acquire entire companies: drilling assets and human resources. 

From COP's CEO, link to Julianne Geiger:

• COP's CEO sees more consolidation.
• ConocoPhillips itself snagged some assets from Shell and Concho Resources last year in two deals worth nearly $20 billion. The deal catapulted Conoco into America's second most prolific Permian producer.