Decline in drilled but uncompleted wells may limit future crude oil production growth

According to our Drilling Productivity Report (DPR), more wells were completed than were drilled in the United States from July 2020 through September 2022 (the latest month for which data are available). As a result, the number of drilled but uncompleted wells (DUCs) in the United States fell to 4,333 as of September 2022, the fewest since at least December 2013, when we started estimating the number of DUCs. Fewer DUCs, along with natural gas pipeline constraints, could limit future U.S. crude oil production growth.