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> The peak and decline of US oil production is going to be one of the geopolitical stories of the next 25 years people have been saying that since the 70s at l

> The peak and decline of US oil production is going to be one of the geopolitical stories of the next 25 years people have been saying that since the 70s at least. The reason why no one is fracking is because oil/gs is so cheap it's not worth it. If the price rises enough the wells turn back on and everyone starts doing it again. Renewables, demand, and regional stability is keeping prices low so putting in the extra effort fracking requires just isn't worth the return. Google says the average break even price of a fracking well in the Permian Basin (SW Texas) is $65/barrel. And the price of oil as of this comment is $65.98 so that would mean a lot of wells are just sitting there because it's not worth the money to pump.

vdupras 1y ago
And that's what it's all about: Energy Return on Investment. Conventional oil has a much much better return than fracking, and the US is out of it. This is what is meant by "decline". Sure, there's plenty of oil, but it's more expensive to get out, so we don't. On the flip side, our economy is dependent on a certain EROI. Below that, it chokes because we don't have enough energy "slaves" to render the services we've came to depend upon.