Despite low oil, Gulf of Mexico production expected to hit record high

so them off shore oil baws will be good right?

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So what does this mean

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Propaganda

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doesn't mean they can't be canceled...
if it isn't profitable, they wont be doing it

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They are cancelling some. But pretty much anyone in a rig contract was seeing that rig contract through. You have some pretty large fees associated with cancelling a rig contract. So if they already paid for the equipment, allocated money to the AFE, have a rig that they are required to pay for, they complete the project. Now that it's been a year or so and rig contracts are up for renewal, you see projects falling fast. No new orders for equipment, lot's of rigs getting dropped, lot's of projects sitting in limbo. Last year wasn't slow at all in the grand scheme of things. This year is a different story so far.

When they say years to "come online", the well may drilled and completed, but the production platform is still being prepared to take on the reserves. I know plenty of wells that sit for months before they flow.

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doesn't mean they can't be canceled...

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I'm pretty sure that these are deepwater projects that were already well into construction with most of the wells likely already drilled and awaiting facility installation. Companies likely spent most of the capital and those costs are sunk. Cash flow even at $30 a barrel is more attractive than eating a 100% loss on capital spent so the project gets completed and put on line. I would assume projects that are just in the appraisal stages will indeed be cancelled. Ask some of the manufacturers how new orders are looking once existing projects get completed - it's ugly.

Right. The production that comes online has mostly been paid for already, so they have to produce it. The projects that may be cancelled are the ones further down the line (several years) that are in early planning stages.