In June, U.S. oil production from key shale regions is expected to hit a six-month high, reaching 9.85 million barrels per day (bpd), the highest level since December, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
This update was part of the EIA’s monthly Drilling Productivity Report released on Monday.
The increase in shale production, which constitutes roughly three-quarters of the nation’s total oil output, is attributed to enhanced well productivity.
Significant growth is anticipated in the Permian Basin, which spans West Texas and New Mexico.
It is projected that production per new rig in the Permian will increase to 1,400 bpd in June, up from 1,386 bpd in May, marking the highest monthly output per rig since November 2021.
Overall, the Permian is set to see a rise of 17,970 bpd, reaching 6.19 million bpd.
In southeastern Texas’s Eagle Ford region, production is expected to increase to 1.11 million bpd, matching its highest output since last December.
Meanwhile, the Bakken region’s output is forecasted to rise marginally by 52 bpd to 1.31 million bpd, also a peak since December.
Conversely, total natural gas output across major shale basins is projected to decrease to a five-month low of 99.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in June, down from 99.5 bcfd in May.
This decline follows a record high of 101.9 bcfd in November 2023.
Notably, in Appalachia—spanning Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia—gas production is expected to drop to a 13-month low of 35.8 bcfd in June from 36.0 bcfd in May.
However, new gas well production per rig in Appalachia is forecasted to reach a 29-month high of 28.6 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) in June, continuing a 22-month streak of increases, with a peak at 34.4 mmcfd in December 2020.
The EIA also reported on drilling activities, noting that producers drilled 864 oil and gas wells and completed 858 in April.
The count of drilled but uncompleted (DUC) oil and gas wells rose to 4,510 in April, marking the highest number since January.
This increase in DUC wells indicates a slight accumulation in reserve drilling capacity, potentially allowing for quick scalability in production if market conditions improve.