據油價網6月18日消息稱,彭博資訊估計,由于嚴格的資本支出和較高的油價,2021年美國頁巖氣生產商預計將產生總計300億美元的自由現金流。
今年,頁巖生產商繼續嚴格控制支出,并沒有在新鉆井上進行再投資,投資金額不會超過其賺得的現金流。
在經歷了2015-2016年的低迷后,回到2017年,就連Harold Hamm也警告其他油氣生產商要小心,因為“鉆井公司不想勘探到破產。”
去年的疫情開啟了分析師所說的美國頁巖的“新時代”,在這個時代,股東回報和償還債務優先于產量增長和創紀錄的產量。
根據德勤去年的估計,自第一次頁巖繁榮以來的15年里,美國頁巖行業損失了3000億美元的凈負現金流,而今年預計從自由現金流中獲得的意外之財僅僅是這個數字的十分之一。
盡管如此,對今年自由現金流的預期讓分析師們樂觀地認為,美國頁巖領域正處于轉折點,并將至少在一到兩年內保持自律。
ESAI能源公司北美上游分析師Elisabeth Murphy告訴彭博社:“從財務角度來看,頁巖正進入一個新的、更好的時代,盈利能力更高。”
美國生產商第一季度的收益和電話會議凸顯了上市頁巖油公司前所未有的克制。上市生產商創造了創紀錄的現金流,但他們并沒有將其中大部分再投資于鉆井。相反,頁巖運營商現在正在將現金流用于減少債務和回報股東。盡管第一季油價大漲逾20%,但美國頁巖氣并未違背限制產量和優先考慮回報的承諾。
曹海斌 摘譯自 油價網
原文如下:
U.S. Shale Set For Record $30 Billion Free Cash Flow In 2021
U.S. shale producers are expected to generate a combined $30 billion in free cash flow in 2021 amid disciplined capital spending and higher oil prices, estimates from Bloomberg Intelligence show.
This year, shale producers continue to adhere to disciplined spending and is not reinvesting in new drilling more than the cash flows it earns.
After the 2015-2016 downturn, back in 2017, even Harold Hamm warned his fellow oil and gas producers to be careful as “drillers don’t want to drill themselves into oblivion.”
The pandemic last year started what analysts have begun to call “a new era” for U.S. shale where returns to shareholders and paying down debts take precedence over production growth and record output.
The expected windfall from free cash flow this year is just one-tenth of the $300 billion in net negative cash flow the U.S. shale industry had lost in the 15 years since the first shale boom, as per Deloitte estimates from last year.
Nevertheless, the expectations of free cash flow this year make analysts optimistic that the U.S. shale patch is at a turning point and will keep discipline for at least another year or two.
“From a financial perspective, shale is entering a new, better era, with higher profitability,” Elisabeth Murphy, ESAI Energy LLC upstream analyst for North America, told Bloomberg.
The first-quarter earnings and conference calls of U.S. producers highlighted a previously unheard-of restraint from public shale firms. Listed producers generated record cash flows, but they are not reinvesting most of those back to drilling. Instead, shale operators are now channeling cash flow toward reducing debts and rewarding shareholders. Despite the first-quarter rally of over 20 percent in oil prices, U.S. shale did not break the promises to keep a lid on production and prioritize returns.
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