Under pressure from investors, U.S. shale drillers are tightening their belts, raising questions about future growth from the world's biggest oil producer.
The shale drillers behind booming U.S. oil and natural gas output have survived a bevy of challenges in recent years, from a historic oil price downturn to an effort by OPEC to wash them out of the market with a flood of cheap crude.
But even with these frackers now pursuing the elusive goal of drilling at a profit, forecasters expect another blockbuster year for U.S. output. After surging by 1.6 million barrels per day last year, making the U.S. the world's biggest producer, average annual American output is poised to grow by more than 1.4 million bpd in 2019, according to the Department of Energy.
Meanwhile, total spending among big companies like EOG Resources and Pioneer Natural Resources is expected to fall just 4.5 percent. RS Energy projects these large players will pump about four times as much oil, natural gas and other liquids as their smaller competitors — and they'll spend five times as much even after cutting expenditures.
However, those private drillers are now holding their fire, said Michael Cohen, head of commodities research at Barclays. Drilling activity is down, and companies aren't likely to ramp up fracking in the next few months, he said.
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