Thursday, September 3, 2026

WTI Just Went Over $92 -- 11:25 P.M. CT -- September 3, 2026

Locator: 51650WTI.

WTI: $92.08.  

Looks like refiners could open significantly higher tomorrow. 


 One year:

My Favorite Chart -- MMFs -- New Record Set -- Posted Thursday, September 3, 2026

Locator: 51649MMF.

TAG: MMF MMFs 

Link here. 

Climbing slowly, very slowly. 

Up by only $45 billion but now stands at $7.98 trillion. That's up from $7.93 trillion and trending even closer to $8 trillion.  

More Fallout From the Trump - Venezuela Deal -- The China Angle -- September 3, 2026

Locator: 51648VENEZUELA.

This is so incredible. This was the first thing I thought when I heard Trump had closed that deal with Venezuela. This is from Charles Kennedy so you know it has to be good. 

Link here. 

For Friday Morning -- Dominion Energy / NextEra Merger Approved By Shareholders -- Posted Thursday, September 3, 2026

Locator: 51647B.

Pageviews: should hit 91 million as early as today.  

Irrelevant: for quite some time, I've been saying the strait is irrelevant. 

In fact, now, the entire war is irrelevant. Trump is considering declaring the "kinetic war" over -- the blockade will continue; the oil will continue to flow; China will switch to non-oil energy sources. That's their choice.

Tesla Cybercab: launches in Austin, TX -- takes effect Friday, September 4, 2026.

Merger approval: Dominion Energy and NextEra -- merger approved by shareholders. Links everywhere. I'll wait for RBN Energy's analysis. 

Iran: something's in the air tonight. Link here.

*********************************
Back to the Bakken

WTI: $91.91. Looks suspiciously close to $92. That was late Thursday night. Now, Friday, September 4, early morning, has slipped back to $90.72. Diesel hits record high. 

New wells reporting:

  • Sunday, September 6, 2026: 13 for the month, 110 for the quarter, 450 for the year,
    • 42335, conf, XTP, GBU Artemis Federal 32X-13H-N, 
    • 42334, conf, XTO, GBU Artemis 32X-13C-N,
    • 41994, conf, Hess, EN-Will Trust C-157-94-2215H-4, 
  • Saturday, September 5, 2026: 10 for the month, 108 for the quarter, 447 for the year,
    • 41995, conf, Hess, EN-Will Trust C-157-94-2215H-5, 
    • 41884, conf, XTO, GBU Artemis 32X-13D-S
  • Friday, September 4, 2026: 8 for the month, 106 for the quarter, 445 for the year,
    • 41970, conf, Devon Energy, Thunderbolt 10-12 1H, 
    • 41883, conf, XTO, GBU Artemis 32X-13H-S, 

RBN Energy: pipeline expansions add breathing room for Permian crude moving to Corpus Christi. Link here. Archived.

The crude oil pipelines from the Permian to Corpus Christi have been maxed out since Q2 but two recent projects are expanding flows by nearly 200 Mb/d. Gray Oak wrapped up a two-part, 120-Mb/d expansion in May, and Plains All American just completed its 75-Mb/d expansion of Cactus III (formerly EPIC), providing a bit more breathing room for Permian production. In today’s RBN blog, we’ll discuss how the added capacity could impact flows to the critical export hub.

There are four major pipelines that move crude from the Permian to Corpus Christi: Cactus I, Cactus II, Cactus III and Gray Oak. The quartet now provides 2.805 MMb/d of combined capacity. Let’s look at them one by one.

Gray Oak (green line in Figure 1 below) is an 850-mile system that moves crude from multiple West Texas receipt points to Corpus Christi and nearby Ingleside. It entered service shortly before the pandemic with a capacity of 900 Mb/d and has long operated at high utilization rates. Continued Permian supply growth prompted Enbridge to expand the line by 120 Mb/d in two phases (see I Want to Break Free). The first, an 80-Mb/d expansion from Crane to Corpus Christi and Ingleside, entered service in May 2025. The second, 40-Mb/d phase was completed in May 2026, bringing Gray Oak’s capacity to 1.02 MMb/d.

Most Interesting -- White House Press Secretary Announced On August 12, 2026, That She Would Step Down By The End Of The Month (August); Mary Bartiromo Says Her Last Live-Airing On Fox News Was August 9, 2026 -- Her Last Day At Fox Was Today, Effective Immediately, No Explanation Given -- Posted September 3, 2026

Locator: 51646POLITICS.

Way too coincidental!

Way too convenient! 

Over a three day period, Mary Bartiromo aired her last live show for Fox News and White House Press Secretary abruptly announced she would be stepping down by the end of the month of August, 2026.

For Mary Bartiromo, August 9, 2026, was a Sunday. For Ms Karoline Leavitt, August 12, 2026, was a Wednesday, so literally less than three full weekdays. Two-and-a-half work days? 

Now, get this, President Trump has named neither a temporary nor a permanent new White House press secretary. My hunch: the White House Press Secretary's office phones have been busy, busy, busy this past month (August). 

Folks may want to discuss this with ChatGPT or Gemini. I have; it's quite interesting. What's at stake here? The mid-terms. Just to start.

Daily Activity Report -- No New Permits -- Four Permits Renewed -- September 3, 2026

Locator: 51645B.

WTI: $91.74. Still holds above a threshold I never thought I would see again. 

Active rigs
: 35.

No new permits.

Four permits renewed:

  • True Oil: four Michigan Federal permits, lot 3, section 6-147-101, McKenzie County. 

This Has Been Done Before -- Hormuz -- LOL -- September 3, 2025

Locator: 51644HORMUZ.

The Strait of Hormuz: seeing how easy it is to do these things, President Trump may rename the strait the Trump Strait. Next: Earth's moon -- Elon Musk. Earth? Trump Planet #1.  

From wiki, The name Hormuz in the Strait of Hormuz primarily traces back to the Middle Persian pronunciation of Ahura Mazda, the supreme deity of Zoroastrianism. Say it quickly, "ahura mazda" --> "hura maz" --> hor maz --> hor muz --> Hormuz.  
Hormuz is both an Hormuz Island and a Hormuz, an Iran city located on that island in southern Iran. 
Historical context: the modern island and city inherit their name from Old Hormuz, a major medieval port city originally located on the Iranian mainland that served as the capital of the prosperous Kingdom of Hormuz before shifting to the island.  
The Kingdom of Hormuz was exceptionally prosperous because it controlled the strategic maritime chokepoint between the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean.
The waterway—the Strait of Hormuz—was subsequently named after the island and city.

Soon to be renamed Trump Strait. Maybe, like the Chines, we will build an artificial island, claim it as our own and hold the surrounding water as American rights. LOL. And what constitutes an island? How about a permanently anchored a/c carrier?

The Dow Is Up Almost 700 Points; NASDAQ Up Almost 400 Points -- BRK-B Up About One-Half Percent -- September 3, 2026

Locator: 51643BRK.

Maria Bartiromo: relationship ends at Fox.  

Entertainment: I haven't seen it and I have no plans to do so, but USA (through Hulu) is streaming "Oppenheimer," the Christopher Nolan, 2023, blockbuster. One of the top movies ever. I won't see it because I have my own myth of Oppenheimer and don't want to see another interpretation.  

The Strait of Hormuz: seeing how easy it is to do these things, President Trump may rename the strait the Trump Strait. Next: Earth's moon -- Elon Musk. Earth? Trump Planet #1.  

From wiki, The name Hormuz in the Strait of Hormuz primarily traces back to the Middle Persian pronunciation of Ahura Mazda, the supreme deity of Zoroastrianism. Say it quickly, "ahura mazda" --> "hura maz" --> hor maz --> hor muz --> Hormuz.  
Hormuz is both an Hormuz Island and a Hormuz, an Iran city located on that island in southern Iran. 
Historical context: the modern island and city inherit their name from Old Hormuz, a major medieval port city originally located on the Iranian mainland that served as the capital of the prosperous Kingdom of Hormuz before shifting to the island.  
The Kingdom of Hormuz was exceptionally prosperous because it controlled the strategic maritime chokepoint between the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean.
The waterway—the Strait of Hormuz—was subsequently named after the island and city.

The story of the day: Deere (DE). 

Record: IRAs, etc. Link here. 

They say September is a terrible month for the market. 

Tickers:

  • Robinhood: up 15% today
  • MSFT: up 3.1% today
  • AAPL: up 1.54% today
  • ORCL: up 5.0% today
  • MPC: up 26% over the last six months
  • CVX: up 13% over the last six months
  • LLY: up 14% over the last six months
  • JPM: up 20% over the last six months
  • SCCO: up 107% over the past 52 weeks 
  • BRK-B: up 1.23% over past 52 weeks and up less than half-a-percent today:

AAPL Update -- Thursday, September 3, 2026

Locator: 51642BALLMER_REDUX.
Locator: 51642DAN_NATHAN.
Locator: 51642AAPL.
Locator: 51642APPLE.

Market today: and WTI at $92.

It's "software versus semis" today.

And then there's Apple. In a sector or one.  See this link. 

Ticker AAPL: 

Dan Nathan said to short AAPL ten days ago on "Fast Money."

Link here: sounds like Ballmer discussing Apple's iPhone. At least Dan is consistent. This has been his message day in, day out. Like Ballmer on YouTube I can listen to this over and over and over. Speaking of Ballmer, see this link.


********************************
Disclaimer

Briefly: 

  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken and I am often well out front of my headlights. I am often appropriately accused of hyperbole when it comes to the Bakken.
  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the US economy and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple.
  • See disclaimer. This is not an investment site. 
  • Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here. All my posts are done quickly: there will be content and typographical errors. If something appears wrong, it probably is. Feel free to fact check everything.
  • If anything on any of my posts is important to you, go to the source. If/when I find typographical / content errors, I will correct them. 
  • Reminder: I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken, US economy, and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple. 
  • And now, Nvidia, also. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Nvidia. Nvidia is a metonym for AI and/or the sixth industrial revolution. 
  • I've now added Broadcom to the disclaimer. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Broadcom. Now, I've added Amazon. And QCOM.
  • Longer version here.
  • Apple Buybacks -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51641AAPL.

    Folks forget that revenues are really important when one is buying back shares. -- Bryn Talkington on "Halftime Report." 

    Apple buybacks. Link here. 

    • 2013: $22.95 billion in buybacks 
    • 2014: $45 billion 
    • 2015: $35.253 billion 
    • 2016: $29.722 billion 
    • 2017: $32.9 billion 
    • 2018: $72.738 billion 
    • 2019: $66.897 billion 
    • 2020: $72.358 billion 
    • 2021: $85.971 billion 
    • 2022: $89.402 billion 
    • 2023: $77.55 billion 
    • 2024: $94.949 billion 
    • 2025: $90.711 billion
    • 2026: $62.094 billion (through the fiscal third quarter) -- at this rate: $82.792 billion.

    BR's Abercrombie Well Starting To Report Production -- A Three-Well Elida Well -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51640ABERCROMBIE.

    The well:

    • 42180, drl/A, BR, Abercrombie 112MBH, Elidah, t5/26; cum over 30-day period, extrapolates to 77,410 bbls/month:

    BR's Abersom Wells Are Starting To Report -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51639ABERSOM.

    The well: 

    • 42179, F/A, BR, Abersom 1-12 UTFH, ULW, a three-well pad in a very busy area,  t7/26; 30-day early production extrapolates to 46,907 bbs over 30 days:

    CLR's Louisville Federal Wells Starting To Report -- Huge Wells? September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51638LOUISVILLE.

    The well:

    • 42219, drl/A, CLR, Louisville Federal 7-7HSL, Baker oil field, a five-well pad, t7/26; cum 30,404 over 19 days extrapolates to 48K over 30 days. 

    A neighboring well, #21696, Vader 1-7H shows a huge halo effect. From 500 bbls/month to 4,600 bbs/month. 

    Whiting Oil's Violet Olson Pad -- Dollar Joe -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51637VIOLET.

    The wells: 

    • Permit/file numbers, a three well pad: 
      • 41444, 41445, 41446, 
      • neighboring well pad, but going south, #20145, Raymond  
    • Violet Olson wells, Dollar Joe oil field: 
    NDIC File No: 41444     API No: 33-105-06401-00-00     CTB No: 241444
    Well Type: OG     Well Status: A     Status Date: 10/1/2025     Wellbore type: Horizontal
    Location: LOT2 5-155-96     Footages: 882 FNL 2144 FEL     Latitude: 48.281803     Longitude: -103.052658
    Current Operator: WHITING OIL AND GAS CORPORATION
    Current Well Name: Violet Olson 5596 13-5 2B
    Elevation(s): 2073 KB   2049 GR   2048 GL     Total Depth: 31080     Field: DOLLAR JOE
    Spud Date(s):  2/20/2025
    Completion Data
       Pool: BAKKEN     Comp: 10/1/2025     Status: F     Date: 10/1/2025
    Cumulative Production Data
       Pool: BAKKEN     Cum Oil: 282550     Cum MCF Gas: 577640     Cum Water: 306347
    Monthly Production Data
    PoolDateDaysBBLS OilRunsBBLS WaterMCF ProdMCF SoldVent/Flare
    BAKKEN7-202625122511234016423313023125844
    BAKKEN6-2026302109521082225475300652902104
    BAKKEN5-2026312551525482260326376363572191
    BAKKEN4-2026302595525984266336542965030399
    BAKKEN3-2026303352533461317256783067634196
    BAKKEN2-2026273046230450312405670956511198
    BAKKEN1-2026222439224408243194557045430140
    BAKKEN12-20253138505385373957870144636016543
    BAKKEN11-2025303500634965389926392463511413
    BAKKEN10-2025313584435709488585996359275688
    BAKKEN9-20250000000

    Headlines -- Part 2 -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51636HEADLINES.

    Ballmer / Clippers: a repeat offender? Ballmer (owner) and Gillian Zucker (president of business operations) both suspended for one year. There is no appeal process available within the NBA framework; would require court intervention -- is Ballmer at risk of losing ownership if he fights this?

    Nvidia: setting the stage for making Nvidia the company that will determine the entire (global) AI environment "to its needs." Will duh. Link here. Reminder: CUDA. 

    Query:

    In percentage terms or in similar terms, to what extent has CUDA been inserted into global AI?
    Reply:

    In percentage terms, Nvidia’s proprietary CUDA platform has been inserted into roughly 75% to 95% of the global AI training and deployment infrastructure. 
    Because CUDA is exclusive to Nvidia hardware, its footprint directly scales with Nvidia's massive share of the AI accelerator market.

    Gloria Steinem: dead at age 92.  

    Yes, there it is: "$19 / month" -- very "same" ad structure, St Jude and ASPC, back-to-back on CNBC. Children vs dogs. $19 / month.  

    Another 80-year-old dies: Michael Scott, Apple's first CEO, passed away on April 12, 2025, at the age of 80.

    QR codes: now showing up more and more on TV ads.  

    Micron (MU):


     

    ********************************
    Disclaimer

    Briefly: 

  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken and I am often well out front of my headlights. I am often appropriately accused of hyperbole when it comes to the Bakken.
  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the US economy and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple.
  • See disclaimer. This is not an investment site. 
  • Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here. All my posts are done quickly: there will be content and typographical errors. If something appears wrong, it probably is. Feel free to fact check everything.
  • If anything on any of my posts is important to you, go to the source. If/when I find typographical / content errors, I will correct them. 
  • Reminder: I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken, US economy, and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple. 
  • And now, Nvidia, also. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Nvidia. Nvidia is a metonym for AI and/or the sixth industrial revolution. 
  • I've now added Broadcom to the disclaimer. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Broadcom. Now, I've added Amazon. And QCOM.
  • Longer version here.
  •  

    Headlines -- Part 1 -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51635HEADLINES.

    WTI: $92.95. Up $1.94; up 2.13% on top of already high prices.

    CVX: up slightly in futures trading.

    AAPL: down minimally. Suddenly AAPL has become the "safe" trade -- much like BRK-B used to be.

    SCCO and GLW diverge: SCCO up; GLW down. This reminds me of the "sand vs ceramics" story at the height of the fracking boom. Sand won.  

    • With regard to the "sand-vs-ceramics" proppant battle at the height of the fracking boom, sand won an overwhelming victory, securing over 80% to 90% of the total market volume. -- RBN Energy.

    Health care costs increasing: huge story on CNBC today. Becky Quick clearly and purposely stated on several news outlets in January, 2026, that her 9-year-old daughter, Kaylie, has a rare genetic disorder called SYNGAP1. 

    • SYNGAP1 is “a rare genetic disorder that causes a spectrum of neurodevelopment disorders”, which currently has no cure and often requires round-the-clock care.

    USAF: a reader asked about USAF inventory --

    • The U.S. Air Force currently has 27 active F-15EX Eagle IIs in its flying inventory compared to a total of 141 heavy strategic bombers consisting of B-52s, B-1Bs, and B-2As. 
    • The United States Air Force currently schedules a total buy of 267 F-15EX Eagle II fighter jets.
    • The U.S. Air Force operates 42 combat-coded legacy F-15C/D Eagle fighters. 
    • Following the complete divestment of the F-15C from active-duty service and forward-deployed areas like Kadena Air Base, the remaining flying fleet is broken down by its specific operational metrics.
    • The Fresno Consolidation: The fleet is projected to scale down to 21 units by 2028. Those final 21 aircraft will consolidate at Fresno Air National Guard Base, California, before the F-15C variant is completely retired in 2030. 
    • The United States Air Force (USAF) currently has an active inventory of 838 to 841 F-16 Fighting Falcons across all components.
    AVGO: stellar. Link here. Says sales will double for next two years -- not over but for next two years. 


    Government debt / deficit
    : looks like both will increase significantly after midterm elections. 

    ********************************
    Disclaimer

    Briefly: 

  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken and I am often well out front of my headlights. I am often appropriately accused of hyperbole when it comes to the Bakken.
  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the US economy and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple.
  • See disclaimer. This is not an investment site. 
  • Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here. All my posts are done quickly: there will be content and typographical errors. If something appears wrong, it probably is. Feel free to fact check everything.
  • If anything on any of my posts is important to you, go to the source. If/when I find typographical / content errors, I will correct them. 
  • Reminder: I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken, US economy, and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple. 
  • And now, Nvidia, also. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Nvidia. Nvidia is a metonym for AI and/or the sixth industrial revolution. 
  • I've now added Broadcom to the disclaimer. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Broadcom. Now, I've added Amazon. And QCOM.
  • Longer version here.
  • Investing -- Early Morning Observations -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51634INVESTING.

    Futures talk:

    • AI is her to stay; it's only going to get better.
    • Fed will raise rates 25 basis points this year -- most likely as early as this month, but certainly by December -- will be a one-day story. 
      • 3 - 4% is the new 1 - 2%. I've always said the same thing.
      • As much as Warsh wants to raise rates to control inflation, there's little he can do; goes back to the nation's total debt payments, now over $1 trillion, and rate increases only makes it worse.  

    Steve Ballmer: a real loser -- smart phone decisions -- not so smart, and now the Clippers. Truly amazing. Ballmer going to fight this. Does not involve Trump at all. LOL. It took $50 million in investigation costs to find Ballmer / Clippers guilty.  

    AVGO: Broadcom earnings incredible and the supercycle is going to last several more years. Shares are down in futures trading.  NASDAQ down 58 points in futures.  Since ChatGPT released 

    SNOW is the real winner. Shares up by a whopping 20% after earnings reported. 

    Berkshire Hathaway does not own any shares of Snowflake (SNOW) anymore. 
    Berkshire originally bought about 6.1 million shares of Snowflake during its initial public offering in September 2020 Berkshire bought 6.1 million shares of SNOW at its IPO in 2020. 
    However, the company sold all their shares in Q2 2024 and doesn't own any shares in Snowflake anymore.. Regulatory filings confirmed that their stake was completely reduced to zero shares by the end of the second quarter of 2024.  
    Berkshire Hathaway made a very modest, minimal profit on its Snowflake (SNOW) investment, booking hardly any net gain by the time it completely exited the stock in 2024. 
    The Exit (Q2 2024): As Snowflake's share price pulled back significantly from its highs, Berkshire dumped its entire stake. Because they sold out as prices hovered closer to their original entry point, the final realized profit was minimal—paling in comparison to the initial paper gains. One could have bought SNOW for $125 at low in 2024; now selling for $306. 
    Should we look at AAPL and BRK next?

    BRK-B: up 0.75% over one year.

    S&P 500 up 20% over same period. 

    AAPL up 36% over same period.

    Okay. 

    Holiday season = silly season for charity. Big push for "$19 / day" to save animals. SPCA. I think that's about what St Jude is asking for. Dogs or children. Koreans are probably wondering.

    *********************************
    Disclaimer

    Briefly: 

  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken and I am often well out front of my headlights. I am often appropriately accused of hyperbole when it comes to the Bakken.
  • I am inappropriately exuberant about the US economy and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple.
  • See disclaimer. This is not an investment site. 
  • Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here. All my posts are done quickly: there will be content and typographical errors. If something appears wrong, it probably is. Feel free to fact check everything.
  • If anything on any of my posts is important to you, go to the source. If/when I find typographical / content errors, I will correct them. 
  • Reminder: I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken, US economy, and the US market.
  • I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Apple. 
  • And now, Nvidia, also. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Nvidia. Nvidia is a metonym for AI and/or the sixth industrial revolution. 
  • I've now added Broadcom to the disclaimer. I am also inappropriately exuberant about all things Broadcom. Now, I've added Amazon. And QCOM.
  • Longer version here.
  • Thursday -- September 3, 2026

    Locator: 51633B.

    Pageviews: 90 million. The run rate of 1.8 million pageviews / 24 hours was correct yesterday morning.

    Liz Ann Sonders: bulls back in charge. 

    Dow futures: up 122 points. NASDAQ down a bit. 

    After jobs numbers came out: Dow jumps. Up 215 points in futures trading. But also, labor costs cme out lower (albeit not much) than expected. It looks like NASDAQ could also turn green; NASDAQ is not pretty much flat from yesterday, very, very slightly negative. S&P 500 keeps heading higher. At 8:00 a.m. CT, NASDAQ suddenly turns green. Up significantly. 

    Budget: Trump signs stopgap bill averting government shutdow. Tea leaves suggest neither party gains politically from government shutdown and folks on both side of the aisle like spending money and going home (back to their districts) during the holidays. 

    ********************************
    Back to the Bakken

    WTI: $92.45. Whoo-hoo. Though oil company share prices down in futures. Dow up slightly.

    • Trump is considering calling the war over. 
    • Putin exploring ways to end its own war. 

    New wells reporting:

    • Friday, September 4, 2026: 8 for the month, 106 for the quarter, 445 for the year,
      • 41970, conf, Devon Energy, Thunderbolt 10-12 1H, 
      • 41883, conf, XTO, GBU Artemis 32X-13H-S, 
    • Thursday, September 3, 2026: 6 for the month, 104 for the quarter, 443 for the year,
      • 42333, conf, XTO, GBU Artemis 32X-13B-N,
      • 41882, conf, XTO, GBU Artemis 32X-13C-S, 
      • 40939, conf, Zavanna, Hereford 13-36 4TFH, 

    RBN Energy: ONEOK levels up its Permian presence with $4.4 billion Brazos midstream deal. Link here. Archived. OKE up 30% over the past 52 weeks. Dividend 4.5%. Likely to maintain same dividend in November, 2026, but will like increase dividend by 3 or 4 cents in February, 2027. 

    ONEOK is buying Brazos Midstream’s natural gas gathering and processing assets in the Permian’s Midland Basin for $4.425 billion. The deal, announced August 30, will more than double ONEOK’s Midland Basin processing capacity to roughly 2.3 Bcf/d and is funded by a $9 billion nonvoting minority equity investment from funds and affiliates managed by Apollo Global Management Inc. In today’s RBN blog, we look at what the transaction could mean for ONEOK.

    Let’s start with a little background on Brazos Midstream and note that the company has only agreed to sell its gas gathering and processing assets in the Midland (see photo below; we’ll discuss in detail farther down) and will maintain its crude oil assets in the basin. 

    The Fort Worth, TX-based company got its start in April 2015 and, with financial backing from Old Ironsides Energy, a then-new private equity firm, Brazos quickly determined that the Permian (and more specifically the southern Delaware Basin in West Texas) offered the best midstream development opportunities and concentrated its efforts there (see Have It All). The timing worked. 

    Thanks to producers’ success in “cracking the code” in the Wolfcamp, Bone Spring and other hydrocarbon-rich formations, the Permian turned out to be the only crude-focused shale play where production actually increased during the mid-2010s downturn in crude prices. Those wells also generated large volumes of associated gas, much of it rich in NGLs, and created an opportunity for a range of midstream infrastructure.