Elizabeth Warren is not one to mince her words. One of the frontrunners for the Democratic nomination is known for her aggressive policy stances, especially when it comes to corporate regulation.
Although a good majority of her stances—such as breaking up big tech—would have a profound effect on equity markets, her promise to immediately “ban fracking everywhere” on her first day in office stands out as being particularly capital destructive.
With some serious momentum in the polls, investors should be beginning to ask themselves, “which companies are in the line of fire?” if the Bay Stater manages to secures the nomination next summer.
If you don’t have an answer to that question—fear not! RBC Capital Markets is here to help with a new report out Monday titled The Aftermath of a Frac Ban. The whole thing is in the usual place, but worth sharing this excellent table from early on in the 112-page report.
Before the table, here’s RBC to explain:
"We scored companies with meaningful exposure to federal acreage. Our scoring system factors the percentage of operated production by commodity to its US holdings plus the relative percentage of future permits on federal lands. For integrateds and international companies, we weighted the ranking based on EBITDA/PV-10/production contribution/value."
And, drum roll please, the table in question:
RBC focused on federal land because it believes that implementing such a ban is possible by executive action. They are more sceptical about the potential for such a policy to cover private land.
Of course, there is a still question over fracking’s commercial viability. A study by Sightline Institute and the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) in August found that, of 29 fracking-focused oil and gas companies, only 11 produced positive free cash flow in the second quarter. The aggregate amount was a measly $26 million.
So if current trends continue (and given how mature the sector is now, there’s no reason to suggest fortunes will change), perhaps the market will do Senator Warren’s bidding for her, regardless of whether she goes on to win the presidency.
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