Hmmmmn.
I am very, very suspicious of the timing of this: There is a MASSIVE anti-anergy, pro-CAGW propaganda move going on now as the recent NASA-GISS, Western Antarctica Ice Sheet “collapse”, movie releases, and “we’re all gonna die” climate catastrophes show.
My opinion? The CA oil fields are pretty much exactly where they were in April with just as much oil and shale rock in them as they were in April, but “somebody” between this energy agency press release and the next energy agency press release is going to make POLITICAL MOVE to either restrain fracking or buy oil rights or change fracking rules to make money later.
For example, just by changing rules now for a few oil areas will make AL of the present money invested there useless, right? So the “oil money” is lost (which makes greens and Washington and Sacramento and Ls Angeles and San Francisco very, very happy!) but leaves the oil in place for investors to buy up cheaply from the starving and government-controlled drought-killed farmers in central CA as well!
So, who benefits? ANYBODY who is well-connected with the democrats in charge, and who can work and think long-term. (Insert name of Chinese and Muslim and democrat donor here)
My opinion?
The industry people (not the stock promotion people) have been talking for a couple years how lasting production from wells in this play are not happening. Hydraulic Fracturing wasn’t yielding expected results. Acidizing and other methods have been pushed to extreme levels trying to create lasting production.
This area of rock is a twisted mess with many, many fractures that allowed oil to escape this deep layer and was the source rock for much of the Kern/Bakersfield previous production.