Shale Producer Whiting Petroleum Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Whiting Petroleum Corp., one of the top oil producers in the Bakken shale play, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 1.

In a news release, the Denver-based company said it had reached an agreement with certain debt holders to pursue a “consensual financial restructuring.” Whiting had explored a wide variety of alternatives to address its balance sheet and looming note maturities in a “highly capital-constrained market environment,” according to CEO Bradley J. Holly.

“Given the severe downturn in oil and gas prices driven by uncertainty around the duration of the Saudi/Russia oil price war and the COVID-19 pandemic, the company’s board of directors came to the conclusion that the principal terms of the financial restructuring negotiated with our creditors provides the best path forward for the company,” said Holly, who also serves as chairman of Whiting’s board, in a statement on April 1.