Chart of the day: because this is April 1st, we may want to check back in, let's say in 24 hours to see if this is truly accurate. (It is.) Link here. Now, valued more than Reddit. Shortly after the market close it was up another $15 but then later, was down a bit.
Five days:
****************************** Meanwhile
Politics: the WSJ called it a "closer-than-expected" race but the fact is the winner won by a landslide. Despite very, very low voter turnout in a solidly red district.
Politics: the GOP had a chance to change things, but then they screwed things up. Google Anna Paulina Luna for the story. Now watch the President continue to run the country by executive order and the shadow president, Judge Jim, fight him at every step. But if I get discouraged, I just watch this video.
Looks like a record high (demand) -- in the chart below -- just when it's being reported that American crude oil production has hit an 11-month low. Wow, that production metric: completely wrong on so many levels. We posted this yesterday with regard to US crude oil production. US crude oil production set a new all-time January record; twelfth consecutive month above 13.1 million bopd, field production. Link here.
Folks are concerned about shale oil production dropping / declining: let's see what WTI does if WTI were to hit $100. That solid dark green line in the graphic below? The year before Covid-19 lockdown, 2019. The month I'm watching: August. Will the US set a new all-time record?
******************************* Back to the Bakken
WTI: $70.21.
Active rigs: 35.
Five new permits, #41759 - #41763, inclusive:
Operators: KODA Resoures (4); Denbury Onshore;
Fields: Fertile Valley (Divide County); a wildcat in Bowman County;
Comments:
Denbury Onshore has a permit for a CHSU well, SWSW 20-131-105, Bowman County, a wildcat,
to be sited 351 FSL and 1002 FWL:
KODA Resources has permits for four Amber wells, Divide County, NENW 22-160-103;
to be sited 400 FNL and 2433 / 2538 FWL.
Changes:
39741, Grayson Mill, Darlene 13-24F 4H; spacing changed from four-section to two sections.
Three producing wells (DUCs) reported as completed:
Inflation watch: 2-liter Diet Coke. The best I can do at Walmart is $2.79. Target generally runs about $3.29. Today, at our local big box beverage store, three for $7,00 or $2.33 / 2-liter bottle. Even without the "special" today they have prices that meet or beat Walmart's price for Coke products.
Tariffs: I assume the $11.99 I spent for a bottle of German white wine today will be significantly more expensive a few weeks from now. Regardless, $11.99 for a bottle of German white wine is probably less expensive than what it would cost me in Germany.
As crude oil pipelines from the Permian to the Gulf Coast edge closer to
full utilization, it’s becoming a challenge for producers and shippers
alike. Amid this capacity crunch, converting Enterprise’s Midland to
ECHO 2 (M2E-2) pipeline back to crude oil service can’t come quickly
enough. In today’s RBN blog — the latest in our series on Permian crude
oil pipelines — we discuss Enterprise’s crude oil footprint from West
Texas to Houston.
In Part 1 and Part 3 of this series, we looked at the Longhorn and
BridgeTex pipelines, respectively, and what ONEOK has accomplished with
these systems since it acquired Magellan Midstream in 2023 (see Tulsa
Time). In Part 2 and Part 4, we looked at the EPIC Crude and Gray Oak
pipelines, respectively, to the Corpus Christi area, which have both
been operating at full capacity. Today, we’ll cover Enterprise’s Midland
to ECHO (M2E) pipelines.
Enterprise has two major oil pipelines from the Permian to the Gulf
Coast — soon to be three (again)! To the Houston area, the long-hauls
include the company’s Midland to ECHO 1 (M2E-1, pink line in Figure 1
below) and Midland to ECHO 3 (M2E-3, which represents the company’s 29%
undivided interest in the Wink to Webster — or W2W — system shown in
orange). Together, these give Enterprise 1.07 MMb/d of crude takeaway
capacity. Further, Enterprise’s Midland to ECHO 2 (M2E-2; blue line)
will soon be returned to crude oil service. (More on that in a moment.)
M2E-1 and M2E-2 twin each other (meaning they follow the same path),
originating at Midland and flowing to Sealy (black dot west of ECHO).
Then, at Sealy, M2E-1 and M2E-2 utilize Enterprise’s Rancho II pipeline
(green line) to its ECHO terminal (pink tank icon). While the
ExxonMobil-operated W2W follows the same path for a portion of the line,
it flows from Midland directly to ECHO, bypassing Sealy and the Rancho
II line. (Enterprise is also a non-operating JV partner in Basin
Pipeline from the Permian to Cushing, which we’ll discuss in a future
blog.)
