We've been out of the office for six working days, since we abandoned ship on Friday the 12th in order to prepare for Ike. But what we didn't count on was having to prepare ourselves to survive the financial hurricane on Wall Street that happened last week. The much-touted, free-market form of American capitalism (that we have tried to export all over the world) is under grave assault due to this year's market events--and the federal government's far-reaching response. This mother of all bailouts will cost our children and grandchildren in both their money and in their ability to spend on more worthy causes, such as medical care and R&D and green technologies and the military and God knows what else. It remains to be seen if the response of the Fed, the Treasury and the White House will be approved by Congress, or will be upheld by whoever wins the presidency in November. But more troubling, it is not clear if this whole scheme will work. Meanwhile, for those of us having to make a living on Main Street, it's time to put on those hurricane shutters, store some extra water, non-perishable foods and batteries. Invest in oil and gas stocks and hope the creeks don't rise--but that the energy stocks do. No matter what else is going on, we will still need oil and gas energy, and lots of it, to repair this economy, to recover the American dream, and to move forward. --Leslie Haines, Editor-in-chief, Oil and Gas Investor, lhaines@hartenergy.com
Recommended Reading
Dividends Declared Week of April 21
2025-04-25 - With first-quarter 2025 earnings underway, here is a compilation of dividends declared from select upstream, midstream and service and supply companies.
Ring Energy Slashes 2Q Capex by 50% After Oil Price Collapse
2025-04-25 - Permian E&P Ring Energy is cutting spending and prioritizing debt reduction with oil prices hanging around $65/bbl.
GeoPark Names Felipe Bayon as New CEO
2025-04-24 - GeoPark’s new CEO Felipe Bayon formerly served as the CEO of Latin American energy major Ecopetrol from 2017 to 2023.
Ørsted Adds New Members to Group Executive Team
2025-04-24 - Offshore wind developer Ørsted appoints Amanda Dasch as chief development officer and Godson Njoku as chief generation officer, effective May 1.
XCL Resources Team Launches X2, Targets Multibillion-Dollar M&A
2025-04-24 - X2 Resources, led by the team behind XCL Resources, is targeting $500 million to multibillion-dollar acquisitions across “premier” oil and gas basins with backing from EnCap and other investors.