Oil Industry's Latest Challenges: Protestors, Regulation and Landowners

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Since the Thanksgiving surprise from OPEC in 2014, the U.S. crude oil industry has faced a long list of challenges. Low crude prices meant far less development and drilling, followed by layoffs and difficulties for midstream companies in securing commitments and funding.

Through this initial economic stress test, the U.S. crude oil industry experienced a sort of "trial by fire," whereby smaller, less reputable players were weeded out, contributing to the overall health of the industry. For more on this, see February 3, 2015, article - Crude Price Drop: Are Low Prices Hitting the Oil Industry's Least Loved Beneficiaries?

With heavy attention now on the industry, players find themselves having to contend with protesters and increased regulatory hurdles. This family of challenges differs from traditional economics in that it deals with softer, less quantifiable factors, such as social license and legal arguments. But in the end, it could be a potential boon for the industry.

Possibly usurping the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline, or KXL project, by TransCanada Corporation (NYSE:TRP) (Calgary, Canada) for protest news is the Dakota Access Pipeline, or DAPL, project as led by Energy Transfer Partners LP (NYSE:ETP) (Dallas, Texas). DAPL's highly publicized fight with the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in North Dakota and the anti-pipeline movement that sprung up around that protest demonstrate the lengths to which opponents of the oil industry are willing to go, as well as how widespread these feelings are. It is no surprise to find that executive orders by the Trump administration to forcibly shorten regulatory consideration periods are seen to be such great boons to pipeline developers who might otherwise spend years in limbo awaiting approvals from numerous agencies.

In the short term, protests and disruptions cause delay and headaches for developers. However, now more than ever it is vital for pipeline operators to make their cases as bulletproof as possible. The kind of due diligence required in researching and preparing such documentation is not something that can be done quickly or haphazardly, lest a flaw be found by a studious pipeline opponent and exploited to further delay the project. As such, only operators or developers who can afford to go through the process both financially and socially are able to pursue their projects.

This trial-by-fire scenario is certainly tough on the operators and developers, but those that make it through will have demonstrated commitments to quality and safety that can only mean good things in the long term for the industry.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.