OPEC’s “Price War” is Stalling New U.S. Shale Oil Drilling

We spotted a Financial Times article with an intriguing title: Opec oil 'price war' will halt shale boom, say US producers. The FT is the UK equivalent of our Wall Street Journal. Although it tilts a bit left, the reporting is usually pretty reliable, so we trust it (for the most part). We learned a few important things from this article. First is that the break-even price for U.S. shale drillers to make a profit is $65 per barrel. If oil remains below that point, new drilling stops. Second, one producer claimed his company would not "put any more rigs out" until prices get back to, and stabilize at, $75 per barrel.

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