No one in North America’s energy sector is likely to forget the second quarter of 2020 anytime soon. In those months — April, May, and June — the demand-destruction effects of the COVID-19 pandemic took root; the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) bottomed out, even going negative for a day; and crude oil-focused drillers in particular shut in vast numbers of wells. In late July and August, when exploration and production companies (E&Ps) announced their results for that train wreck of a quarter, it came as no surprise that the write-downs and losses were generally immense and, in many cases, record-shattering. But WTI prices have rebounded somewhat the past couple of months, as has production, suggesting that while E&Ps third-quarter results will be far from stellar, they’ll at least show an improvement and hopefully set the stage for further gains going forward. Today, we break down second-quarter results by producer peer group and discuss the positive trends that portend improved results for the third quarter.
Getting Better – E&Ps’ Third-Quarter Results Seen Rebounding After a Memorable, Brutal Spring
