COLUMN: The US oil industry needs more M&A.

If my trusty and worn-out rolodex serves as any reference, there is plenty of US E&P firms left for a fresh round of consolidation in 2024.

The biggest hurdles? Oil prices and American politics

#OOTT @Opinion bloomberg.com/opinion/articl…

SLB agrees to acquire smaller oilfield service rival ChampionX for $7.8 billion in an effort to beef up its offerings to helps clients globally boost production long after the wells begin flowing bloomberg.com/news/articles/… via Bloomberg Markets

US oil companies including Diamondback Energy are considering small #nuclear reactors to power drilling operations in Texas’s #Permian Basin. Oklo $FANG By Will Wade Mitchell Ferman
trib.al/hqrw1Wf

Oil CEOs are expressing concern about political and regulatory 'uncertainty' in the US that won’t be settled until the November election, according to the Dallas Fed bloomberg.com/news/articles/… w/Tope Alake via Bloomberg Markets

Phillips 66, the No. 2 US oil refiner, expects global demand for motor fuels to grow for years even as gasoline usage in the US market begins to plateau. bloomberg.com/news/articles/… via Bloomberg Markets

Possibly the strangest image I’ve taken…
ArtButMakeItSports

#purdue #ballhead

The global energy transition is 'visibly failing' on most fronts as proponents overlook the impacts on consumers, says Saudi Aramco Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser bloomberg.com/news/articles/… W/Devika Krishna Kumar via @bbgequality

Shale explorers have returned to expansion mode again, after months of flat activity. Oil rigs in the US climbed to the highest level in half a year on Friday. bloomberg.com/news/articles/… via Bloomberg Markets

You can NEVER trust Houston traffic.

Cowboy Marty Yates of Stephenville, TX was running late to the Houston Rodeo due to traffic. So, he rode his horse down the median.

He made it in time AND went on to win his semi-finals.
📷: Loni Kay Yates RODEOHOUSTON #HoustonRodeo

Once relegated to back-office work for decades, AI is moving more prominently into oilfields around the world, led by the US shale patch. 'If it works in North American shale, it will work even better elsewhere.' bloomberg.com/news/articles/… via Bloomberg Technology

Saudi Arabia wants to invest in an LNG project 🇸🇦🚢

💰 Aramco is in “discussions with a number of entities in the US and other regions,” said CEO Nasser
👀 They will focus on overseas LNG projects, and use its gas at home to produce blue hydrogen/power

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

It's surprising that Chevron didn't address its Guyana deal risk with Hess more up front, veteran energy investor Haag Sherman tells Katie Greifeld on Bloomberg TV. That's a 'loose end' he'd want tied up if he's Chevron. bloomberg.com/news/articles/… W/Kevin Crowley via Bloomberg Markets

Your feel-good story of the day… Jaelyn Kay watched a Rice Baseball game from her window at Texas Children's & is now their good luck charm.

Her story ⬇️ TheMarfanFoundation
chron.com/sports/article…

Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta says talks to bring the NHL to Houston have picked up of late as he sees a hockey team as a way to boost the downtown economy.
trib.al/TTNbLL0

Tilman Fertitta: Talks to bring NHL team to Houston have intensified trib.al/gg23Wht

🏒 Tilman Fertitta wants a NHL team to boost Houston's growth

(via Shelly Hagan & David Wethe)
bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

Texas had a record $32 billion surplus but—amid the fight over private school vouchers—didn’t send that money to public schools. Now many districts are facing major budget shortfalls, and this one in the Houston suburbs has decided to eliminate librarians. houstonlanding.org/spring-branch-…

Diamondback's planned merger with Endeavor signals Wall Street is warming up to Big Shale bloomberg.com/news/articles/… w/Kevin Crowley & Mitchell Ferman via Bloomberg Green

I don't care how bad your day is, it is not as bad as whoever proofread Lyft's earnings release

Oil production from the US shale patch is expected grow at a slower pace next month after a speed bump late last year knocked output off its record pace bloomberg.com/news/articles/… via Bloomberg Markets