Matador Resources Co., Dallas, ramped up operations and spending during the third quarter—topping the midpoint of the July capex guidance by $95 million—to take advantage of lower service prices. That decision resulted in Matador turning in line 34.5 net operated wells, which was 4.5 wells above executives’ guidance from 3 months ago. Those incremental wells added $15 million to capex during the quarter but executives said they also allocated $56 million to wells that they expect to turn in line this quarter. Also contributing to the spending increase was due to unexpected non-operated well activity of $15 million. Those factors contributed to third-quarter capex coming in at $430 million versus the $335 million midpoint of executives’ range from the summer. For the full year, chairman and chief executive officer Joe Foran and his team now expect the midpoint of spending to be a little more than $1.5 billion, up from nearly $1.28 billion after the year’s second quarter.  During the current quarter, Matador produced more than 119,500 b/d of oil, which was above the range of 116,500-118,000 b/d of production Foran and his lieutenants forecast 3 months ago but below second-quarter’s s nearly 123,000 b/d. Total production was flat with the spring quarter at about 209,000 boe/d. In midday trading, shares of Matador (Ticker: MTDR) were down about 10% to $39.42, the lowest level since early May. The company’s market capitalization, which was roughly $6.2 billion in late July, is now back to about $5 billion. The executive team is guiding for full-year production to be about 206,000 boe/d, slightly higher than the previous 202,500 boe/d estimate. For 2026, the company expects oil production growth of 2-5% and total production to be about 210,000 boe/d. Foran said the team will use the greater efficiency gained over the last quarter—Matador’s drilling and

Oil rose after a technical guage signaled recent declines were overdone, while a US government report showing a drop in inventories offered some relief over concerns about oversupply. West Texas Intermediate futures rose around 1% to settle above $58 a barrel, signaling a corrective phase following a roughly week-long stint in oversold territory on the relative strength index. Brent futures rose 2% to settle below $63. The commodity received support from government data that showed total US petroleum stockpiles declined by about 4.2 million barrels to reach the lowest since late September. The no-surprises report was also generally in-line with a closely followed industry forecast by the API. “While the release isn’t likely to change the broader consensus that large builds are imminent, it does help the market hold recent gains,” said Rebecca Babin, a senior energy trader at CIBC Private Wealth Group. “That said, it’s not a strong catalyst for further upside, as many traders still believe sizable builds are just around the corner.” Oil still remains on track for a third monthly loss as signs of a global surplus put downward pressure on prices, though that’s provided an opportunity for the Trump administration to buy crude for strategic reserves. The US plans to purchase 1 million barrels for delivery in December and January. The commodity earlier perked up on a report the US and India are nearing a trade deal that could see the South Asian nation gradually reduce imports of Russian crude, which would boost demand for alternative supplies. India’s refiners have previously indicated they would trim, but not stop, the imports. Adding to that bullish sentiment, European Union leaders are expected to greenlight a 19th Russia sanctions package at a summit on Thursday, after Slovakia dropped its objections. Russia on Wednesday launched multiple drone and missile

New Zealand is relaxing climate reporting rules on concerns over the cost to businesses, in another retreat from policies designed to limit greenhouse gas emissions. Companies listed on the NZX, the country’s main exchange, will now only have to provide disclosures if their market capitalization is NZ$1 billion ($570 million) or more, Commerce Minister Scott Simpson said Wednesday in Wellington. The previous threshold was NZ$60 million. In addition, directors will no longer be deemed liable if companies break the reporting rules, he said. New Zealand was the first nation to legislate for mandatory climate-related disclosures when Jacinda Ardern’s government passed a law in 2021 designed to make the risks more transparent for investors and regulators. The center-right government that won power in late 2023 has softened a number of initiatives aimed at tackling emissions, citing their impact on farmers and business. “While the intentions were solid, the rules proved too onerous and have become a deterrent for potential listers,” Simpson said. “It made sense to review these after the first year of reporting. We have listened to the feedback, examined how the regime operates in practice, and are now resetting the settings accordingly.” Some firms claimed the cost of complying with the reporting rules was as much as NZ$2 million, he said. The decision to relax disclosure rules comes just days after New Zealand adopted a less ambitious methane emissions target and ruled out a tax on farm emissions. A ban on offshore oil and gas exploration has also been relaxed, and new rules introduced to slow the rate at which farmland is being converted into forestry for carbon credits. Lawmakers in the European Union this month also moved to limit the scope of sustainability reporting directives amid criticism from companies, while Singapore in August extended the timeline for some listed firms to comply with disclosure requirements. In

President Donald Trump said Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured him during a phone call Tuesday that India would wind down purchases of Russian oil, a possible reprieve to their trade impasse. Trump said at the White House during a Diwali celebration that the two leaders had “talked about a lot of things, but mostly the world of trade — he’s very interested in that.” Modi acknowledged the call in a social media post on Wednesday, without mentioning the content of the discussion.  Trump hit India with 50% tariffs on its exports to the US in part to pressure New Delhi to stop buying Russian oil and to counter what the US has cast as high levies and other barriers on American goods. The US president said last week that he had received assurances from Modi that India would stop buying oil from Russia, transactions seen by Ukraine’s allies as buoying the Kremlin’s economy and war effort. New Delhi hasn’t confirmed whether it would comply and the Ministry of External Affairs said it wasn’t aware of a call between Trump and Modi last week. On Tuesday, Trump appeared to signal that India would curb rather than halt purchases of Russian energy. “He’s not going to buy much oil from Russia,” Trump said. “He wants to see that war end as much as I do. He wants to see the war end with Russia, Ukraine, and as you know, they’re not going to be buying too much oil.” In a post on X, Modi thanked Trump for the “warm Diwali greetings.” The Indian embassy didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the call. The White House also did not immediately respond to a request for more details.  Thank you, President Trump, for your phone call and warm Diwali greetings. On this festival

In its most recent Oil Market Monthly Report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) lowered its projections for oil demand growth for this year, while increasing its expectations for supply growth, indicating a significant supply overhang. IEA highlights that global oil inventories are already surging, particularly oil stored in tankers on water. IEA data shows that global oil demand actually expanded by 750,000 b/d year-on-year (y-o-y) in third-quarter 2025, led by a rebound in petrochemical feedstock use following the tariff-induced slowdown in second-quarter 2025. However, the agency expects oil consumption to stay subdued through the rest of 2025 and in 2026, as weaker macroeconomic conditions and rising transport electrification weigh on demand. Annual demand growth is now projected at around 700,000 b/d for both years, down from 740,000 b/d expected for 2025 in IEA’s September report. This growth is well below the 980,000 b/d pace seen in 2024 and markedly lower than the 1.3 million b/d average during the 2010s. Demand for 2025 and 2026 is now projected to be 103.8 million b/d and 104.5 million b/d, respectively. Total global oil supply increased by 760,000 b/d month-on-month (m-o-m) in September to reach 108 million b/d, driven by a 1 million b/d surge in OPEC+ output, primarily from the Middle East. In this month’s report, IEA forecasts that global oil supply will increase by 3 million b/d to reach 106.1 million b/d in 2025, followed by an additional rise of 2.4 million b/d in 2026. This projection exceeds the September forecast of 2.7 million b/d supply growth for 2025 and 2.1 million b/d growth next year.  Non-OPEC+ producers account for 1.6 million b/d of this year’s growth and 1.2 million b/d next year, led by the US, Brazil, Canada, Guyana, and Argentina. OPEC+ output is expected to add 1.4 million b/d in 2025 and

The bp plc-led Shah Deniz consortium has awarded three offshore contracts to advance the Shah Deniz compression (SDC) project in Azerbaijan. The $2.9-billion SDC project was sanctioned earlier this year. The aim is to access and produce low pressure gas reserves in Shah Deniz gas field and maximize resource recovery. In first-half 2025, the field produced around 14 billion cu m of gas and about 16 million bbl of condensate in total from the Shah Deniz Alpha and Shah Deniz Bravo platforms. Production capacty of existing Shah Deniz infrastructure is about 77.2 million cu m/day of gas. The contracts, with a combined value of about $700 million, have been awarded to the Saipem-BOS Shelf joint venture. The scope of work under the contracts includes: Transportation and installation of the entire SDC platform – a new 19,000-tonne platform to be installed in the Caspian Sea. Engineering, procurement, construction, and installation of subsea structures, including about 26 km of new offshore pipelines, to connect the SDC platform with existing Shah Deniz infrastructure. All onshore construction activities will be carried out at Baku Deep Water Jacket Factory, operated by BOS Shelf. Offshore construction and installation will be executed using the Khankendi subsea construction vessel owned by the Shah Deniz consortium, and the Israfil Huseynov pipelay barge owned by the Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Co. (ASCO). Both vessels will be operated by Saipem. Offshore activities are expected to begin with pin pile installation in third-quarter 2026, with completion targeted for 2029. Shah Deniz compression project The SDC project is expected to enable around 50 billion cu m of additional gas and about 25 million bbl of additional condensate production and export from Shah Deniz field, bp said in a project overview on its website. The project involves installation of an electrically-powered unmanned compression platform in 85