International shale oil and gas plays show promise, but commercial production is years away. Read More

The Big Four’s fourth-quarter results and related conference calls revealed that the boom in deepwater drilling has accelerated much more rapidly than most industry observers had expected three to six months ago. Well complexity and service intensity go hand in hand; an upsurge in deepwater drilling could be a boon… Read More

In the first half of 2011, the Big Four benefited from tight supply-demand conditions for many key services, as frenzied drilling activity in North American shale oil and gas plays strained the industry’s capacity to meet these needs. In particular, a shortage of pressure pumping capacity–a service critical to hydraulic… Read More

February's energy stock of the month is an upstream master limited partnership that boasts a high-quality, oil-heavy asset base and ample opportunity for drop-down transactions from its general partner. Read More

I’m making a number of changes to the names in my Best Buys list. 1. SandRidge Mississippian Trust I (NYSE: SDT) is a US energy trust that I first profiled and added to the Growth Portfolio in the Oct. 6, 2011, issue of The Energy Strategist, The Yield… Read More

The boom in deepwater drilling should pay off for these Portfolio holdings. Read More

Although the international rig count remains elevated and oil prices support developmental drilling, intense price competition on large-scale projects has limited margin growth for oil services firms. Read More

With natural gas prices likely to remain depressed for at least the next two to three years, producers have scaled back drilling in the Haynesville Shale and other dry-gas plays in favor of the Eagle Ford Shale and other liquids-rich basins. The implications of this strategy shift for overall drilling activity and margins on pressure pumping are unclear at this juncture. Read More