Arctic oil and gas development is gaining momentum as ConocoPhillips advances its Willow project and U.S. policy shifts toward potentially opening additional Alaska offshore resources. With Willow approximately 50% complete and Norway maintaining its commitment to Barents Sea development, northern regions are emerging as an important long-term market for operators and the oilfield service supply chain.
Gunvor is reportedly considering a $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion acquisition of Silver Hill Energy’s Haynesville gas assets, while OilGasLeads data shows Silver Hill has drilled 39 wells across Texas, Louisiana and North Dakota in 2026 YTD. The potential transaction highlights the growing strategic value of Haynesville production as LNG exports, power demand and demand for secure U.S. natural gas supplies increase.
Staghorn Petroleum II is a high-priority Next Tier Anadarko Basin operator, combining a sizeable legacy well portfolio with consistent redevelopment activity, including 34 permits since 2020 and increasing recent concentration in Grady County. Its mix of new horizontal development and existing production creates sales opportunities across drilling and completions as well as Maintenance Plus services such as artificial lift, workovers, chemicals, automation, and production optimization.
Ensign Natural Resources II is an NGP-backed Houston E&P making a major return to the Eagle Ford through its approximately $1.2-billion acquisition of 43,000 net South Texas acres from ConocoPhillips, backed by a management platform with extensive prior experience developing and monetizing Eagle Ford assets. Recent activity, including five Texas drilling permits in the latest reported week, makes Ensign II a high-priority Next Tier account with immediate drilling and completion opportunities and a potentially expanding longer-term market for artificial lift, chemicals, automation and Maintenance Plus production services.
New well permit activity from emerging, mature and previously dormant operators shows that U.S. oil growth is broadening beyond the major shale producers. This reinforces the “Safe Barrel” thesis, where targeted drilling combines with Maintenance Plus strategies to increase production from existing assets while controlling costs.
Mewbourne drilled 193 wells YTD across 90 identified pads, with 64% of activity concentrated in New Mexico and Eddy and Lea counties leading development; Patterson dominates the drilling program, including the most active contractor/rig combinations.
Artificial Lift Optimization is emerging as a key “Maintenance Plus” strategy, with operators using AI, automation, improved ESP and rod-pump performance, workovers and real-time optimization to reduce downtime, flatten declines and unlock incremental production from existing wells. From Chevron “sweating the assets” to Diamondback’s “pump by exception” model, the goal is increasingly to generate more production and free cash flow from the existing asset base without adding significant capital or drilling activity.
Top operators remain bullish on the Eagle Ford, viewing it as a proven, capital-efficient “safe barrel” where existing infrastructure, improving well economics, and Austin Chalk expansion support continued investment. The strategy increasingly combines selective drilling with Maintenance Plus programs—workovers, artificial lift, chemicals, automation, and production optimization—to slow declines, increase existing-well production, and control LOE.
Adamas Energy is moving from post-acquisition transition into active development, with new well and air permits signaling expanding activity across its East Texas position. The overlap between drilling and facility permitting—particularly in the Haynesville—points toward the next phase of spending on production facilities, compression, gathering, pipelines, construction, and automation.
CN Energy Group has begun oil production from a project in Alberta’s Cold Lake region through its Canadian subsidiaries. The company plans to use the investment as a foundation for a broader North American strategy spanning oil production, investment, transportation, trading and supply chain services.
