Energy Snapshot: Industry Themes - June 2016

As the oil market begins to show signs of balance, we examine how the energy industry has responded sharply to the fall in the oil price with a steep reduction in investment and costs.  Since Q4 2014, we have removed US$370 billion (30%) of capital expenditure across 2016 and 2017, and, looking further out to 2020, the number is US$620 billion (22%). The industry has sought to cut costs and this has taken many forms with project deferrals, re-working proposed projects, productivity gains and cuts in higher cost regions. Regionally, the deepest cuts have been in the US Lower 48, where capital investment has halved in 2016-17. Elsewhere, there are some surprises with investment actually strengthening in North Africa and the Middle East as well as in Russia on a local currency basis.