A Baker Hughes operator conducts a wired survey on a natural gas gas platform from Chesapeake Energy in the north of Barnett shale near Burleson, Texas.
Matt swimming | Getty images
President Donald Trump hopes that the oil and gas industry “Foret, Baby, Forest” in the continuation of his energy dominance program, but the companies involved in the real drilling and maintenance of Wells have shot in his first 100 days in power.
US gross oil Prices have dropped a barrel by $ 65, down more than 20% since the start of Trump's second term, which makes it unprofitable for many companies to stimulate production, according to a survey of the Federal Bank of the Dallas Reserve.
The leaders of the first line of the American shale oil boom have tightened in their criticism of Trump policies in the anonymous responses to this same investigation. They used the word “uncertainty” in their comments more than in any quarter since the start of the COVVI-19 pandemic five years ago, according to Mason Hamilton, vice-president of the economy and research in American Petroleum Institute.
Petroleum fields Baker Hughes,, Halliburton And Slb warn that investment in exploration, drilling and production will slow down this year due to the drop in oil prices. Baker Hughes and SLB shares have been down more than 20% since Trump's inauguration while Halliburton fell by 32%.
The energy sector of the S&P 500 has dropped by more than 11% since January 20, more than the lower market of almost 8%.
The CEO of SLB, Olivier Le Putch, told investors last week that Trump prices cause an economic uncertainty that could harm demand, while the group of producers known as OPEC + accelerates the supply more quickly than expected.
“In this environment, the prices of raw materials are disputed and until they stabilize, customers are likely to adopt a more prudent approach to short -term activity and discretionary expenses,” said the little last week during the call for profits from the first quarter of the SLB with analysts and investors.
Less drilling
The North American oil market faces a risk of decreasing more than the rest of the world, as land production in the United States is more sensitive to raw material prices, said CEO of SLB.
Baker Hughes plans that global investment upstream in exploration and production will decrease this year to high figures compared to 2024, with expenses in North America down two -digit, CEO Lorenzo Simoneli told investors during his profits, also last week.
“The prospects for an excess oil market, the rise in prices, the uncertainty in Mexico and the weakness of activity in Saudi Arabia collectively limit the international levels of upstream expenditure,” said Simoneli.
But the situation is fluid, with little visibility on what the second semester will bring, in particular for more economically sensitive activities such as the drilling and completion of the wells, said Baker Hughes. There is even a risk that the prospects can deteriorate more, he said.
“These expectations suppose stabilization of oil prices around current levels and (that) prices are due to the break rates of 90 days,” said Simonelli. “A supported decision lower than the prices of oil or the worsening of prices would introduce an additional risk for this perspective.”
For his part, Halliburton CEO Jeffrey Miller said that customers “assess their scenarios and activity plans for 2025”. Miller warned that the recent Halliburton call gains that a reduction in activity could lead to a “higher white space than normal”, referring to the periods when the equipment is not used.
The SLB expects revenues to be flat or increase by half-term figures in the second half. Baker Hughes sees a price impact from $ 100 to 200 million to its profits before interest, tax, damping and damping, assuming that price rates do not increase this year. Halliburton plans that trade tensions will reach its profits from 2 to 3 cents per second quarter.
The energy secretary promises “clarity”
Drilling entrepreneur Patterson-Uti Energy Also sees an uncertain perspective, although the activity levels have not yet been affected, said CEO William Hendricks when the company's profits call last Thursday. The stock of Patterson-Uta fell by about 35% since Trump came to power.
“If oil prices remain close to current levels for an extended period, we could see some of our customers reassess their plans,” said Hendricks. The CEO said that exploration and production companies were waiting to see if oil prices bounce back to the upper range of $ 60 per barrel.
“In the 1960s, we could see a softening if it stays there,” said Hendricks. “Admittedly, there would be E & PS which will make decisions to reduce their budgets. But even in the Bas-60, I would not expect a drastic customer response for which we work,” he said.
The United States Secretary, Chris Wright, recognized as oil and gas leaders at a conference in Oklahoma City last week that there is “a lot of anxiety and uncertainty” in the industry right now.
“It will be gone in a few weeks. Maybe it's a few months, but I think that in a few weeks, we will have a certain clarity on this subject,” said Wright, defending Trump's trade policy. The petroleum service provider that Wright founded, Freedom of energyFunished almost 46% since the inauguration of Trump.
Wright argued at the Oklahoma conference that American reindustrialisation following Trump's trade policy will ultimately increase energy demand. In an interview with CNBC on Monday, the energy secretary said that he does not expect the production of American oil significantly.
“Our administration, we have no impact on the short -term movement of petroleum prices or any price,” said Wright to Brian Sullivan de CNBC. “We are trying to do our best to reduce the cost to produce a barrel of oil,” he said, highlighting Trump's efforts to reduce regulations and speed.
