據3月24日Energy Voice報道，隨著油價暴跌至近20美元/桶，德克薩斯州各地的鉆探活動正在放緩。

德州鐵路委員會(Railroad Commission of Texas)數據顯示，2019年，900多家勘探和生產公司平均每周提交230份鉆探許可。而在石油需求減弱的當下，勘探許可申請的提交已經放緩。

從3月4日到11日，約有64家公司申請了181份鉆探許可證。一周后，只有59家公司提交了167份鉆探許可證。

在原油價格低至13.66美元/桶的情況下，休斯敦石油公司EOG Resources仍能實現盈利，該公司在兩周內申請了27個鉆探許可，該公司在西德克薩斯州二疊紀盆地和德得克薩斯州鷹福特頁巖項目中申請了27個鉆井許可，居領先地位。

盡管如此，為了應對市場狀況，EOG最近將其2020年的鉆井預算縮減了近三分之一。該公司計劃今年在鉆井、水力壓裂和其他項目上投資43億至47億美元。

鄒勤 摘譯自 Energy Voice

原文如下：

Drilling Down: Drilling permit activity slows down amid record low oil prices

Drilling permit activity is slowing across Texas as oil prices crash to near $20 per barrel.

More than 900 exploration and production companies filed an average of 230 drilling permits per week in 2019, Railroad Commission of Texas data shows.

That activity has slowed down this month during the price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia, as well as weakened demand from the coronavirus outbreak.

From March 4 to 11, some 64 companies filed for 181 drilling permits. Those numbers fell to 59 companies filing 167 drilling permits one week later.

Still profitable at crude prices as low as $13.66 per barrel, Houston oil company EOG Resources leads the pack with 27 drilling permits filed over the two-week period for projects in the Permian Basin of West Texas and the Eagle Ford Shale of South Texas.

Nonetheless and in response to market conditions, EOG recently scaled back its 2020 drilling budget by nearly a third. The company plans to spend $4.3 billion to $4.7 billion on drilling, hydraulic fracturing and other capital projects this year.