The unconventional is becoming the new conventional

An Unconventional Blog evolution

The Unconventional Oil and Gas revolution in North America created a new boom for North American energy supplies and has turned the energy world upside down, bringing on new supplies which finally put downward pressure on prices when coupled with weakened demand. As previously reported in this blog, the new oil and gas boom also has changed the conventional oil and gas playing field (see New Oil & Gas Boom Paradigm: Reviving the Conventional; The Unconventional Offshoot; Unconventional techniques in conventional plays, North America; and others) . Today, thanks to the technology of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, we are seeing legacy asset revivals in many areas of North America, including the Permian Basin, the Anadarko Basin, the Powder River Basin and other oil and gas rich basins. Unconventional plays produce a high percentage of today's onshore production, and with the move of unconventional technology into older conventional plays, it has become important to view and discuss energy activity more broadly in this blog.

Unconventional activity is still of great interest to the energy industry and IHS will continue covering it in this blog. But we will expand the blog's coverage by providing a broader thought leadership perspective on a wide spectrum of energy issues and topics. Examples include subjects which help us manage and lead through this low oil price cycle:
new corporate strategies and valuations

• changing industry costs
• cost sensitivities in corporate success
• new technologies and analytical techniques that drive efficiency and reduce risk
• activity in new unconventional and conventional plays that will supply future energy
• acquisitions which could raise return on capital employed and other unique financial perspectives
• developments in power, gas and coal that balance and complete the energy big picture

This blog has already offered new postings covering geoscience analytical techniques, play activities and trends, and we have several articles about engineering analytical techniques already queued up for publication soon. As these web pages evolve from a singular focus on unconventional oil and gas activity and implications to a broader view of global energy, we are renaming it the IHS Energy Blog. Please review our new menu structure and explore our new articles.

As always, IHS Energy welcomes your interaction, questions and comments.

By Steve Trammel, November 10, 2015

This article was published by S&P Global Commodity Insights and not by S&P Global Ratings, which is a separately managed division of S&P Global.