Another Energy Bust?

With the 2015-17 depressed energy price cycle closely behind us, it’s hard to imagine we might be entering a new energy downtown. The fact is, we might have never left the previous one. Three years ago, the U.S. energy sector saw the worst slump since the mid-1980s.

With over 300 energy-related Chapter 11 filings and dozens of out-of-court workouts, most hoped we had seen the worst of it. Now, oil production is at an all-time high of 11.6 millions barrels per day and WTI crude unexpectedly fell below $50 in December (its lowest closing price since mid-2017).

In an article for the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, Michael Eisenband and Chuck Carroll analyze the energy sector, how we got here and where we may be headed.