Petroleum Institute survey finds US shale drilling expenditure increased in 2015
U.S. oil and natural gas industry expenditures on shale well drilling increased in 2015 compared to 2014, despite a decrease in overall expenditures, according to the American Petroleum Institute’s (API) 2015 Joint Association Survey on Drilling Costs.
The report found that drilling expenditures for the 28,809 U.S. oil and natural gas wells reached approximately $122.8 billion in 2015. The estimated number of wells drills dropped by 37.6 percent compared to 2014 and overall expenditures decreased by 27.2 percent.
The number of shale gas wells changed little from 2014 to 2015, while the industry increased spending on shale wells by $119 million. Shale drilling represented nearly half of all drilling expenditures in 2015, accounting for 47.7 percent of costs.
Oil made up 64.5 percent of 2015’s total drilling costs and natural gas expenditures represented 24.8 percent of costs, an increase from 24.4 percent in 2014.
Development well expenditures reached approximately $109.6 billion in 2015, while approximately $5.6 billion was spent on exploratory wells.
