Pain in the Permian
West Texas is the beating heart of US oil. Can it survive the price bust?
The convoys of 18-wheelers ferrying equipment across the vast terrain easily outnumber all other vehicles on the road. They’ve long since overwhelmed a highway that was built for people passing through this desolate stretch of West Texas, now servicing one of the biggest oilfields in the world. Construction crews are laying down new tarmac as quickly as they can, but it’s not fast enough. Racing from oilfield to oilfield, horns blaring, the big rigs make navigating the road a sometimes-harrowing adventure for sedans like mine. And the dust: kicked up by the bustle, it coats everything. If this is your first impression of the place, you’d think business is still booming in the Permian shale,
Also in this section
22 April 2026
The failure of OMV Petrom’s keenly watched exploration campaign at Bulgaria’s Han Asparuh block highlights the Black Sea’s uneven track record, despite major successes like Neptun Deep and Sakarya
22 April 2026
Sustained strikes on ports, terminals and refineries are testing the resilience of Russia’s oil export system, yet rapid repairs, rerouting and surging prices mean the campaign has yet to deliver a decisive blow
21 April 2026
After overcoming a COVID-induced demand collapse with several years of successful market management, geopolitical events have conspired to provide the pact’s biggest test to date
21 April 2026
The regime’s policy of using nuclear ambiguity as a deterrent may have failed but it has realised it has other cards to play, while its neighbours are reappraising their approach to security
