Since the beginning of the U.S. fracking revolution, oil producers have struggled with a vexing problem: after an initial burst, crude output from new shale wells falls much faster than from conventional wells. However, those well decline rates have been slowing across the United States over the past few years, according to data analysis provided exclusively to Reuters. The trend, if sustained, would help ameliorate the industry’s most glaring weakness and cement its importance for worldwide production in years to come. It also helps explain shale drillers’ resilience throughout the oil market’s two-year slump.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-shale-declinerates-idUSKCN0ZH3RQ
