Recorded on April 20, 2023

Episode 81 of the PetroNerds podcast is part one of an incredible double header with Daniel Seaver, VP of Midstream and Marketing, at Fundare Resources. Fundare is a private operator in Denver that is actively drilling in the DJ (Denver Julesburg) Basin in Colorado.

Trisha Curtis sits down with Daniel for an in depth and frank dialogue on the state of the industry, the trajectory of oil prices, and regulations and business dynamics in Colorado and beyond. Trisha and Daniel discuss the current pressure on oil prices, Daniel’s perspective as a private operator and the bullish investment thesis, and oil price dynamics and industry group think. They get into the energy transition and the negative sentiment around oil and gas and the pressure this is having on stocks and investments and share price performance and the lack of love for oil and gas.

Trisha discusses her recent trip to DC and her conversation with folks in DC regarding energy security and the energy transition. She talks about the compounded effects that the movement against oil and gas is having with rising regulatory uncertainty in the business. Trisha also gets into the role this investor sentiment is playing in the outlook and analysis for US shale. Daniel asks Trisha about Tier 1 acreage and Trisha gives a detailed explanation about the role of private operators helping to expand acreage availability and debunking the Tier 1 to Tier 4 acreage argument. They discuss the deep seated regulatory issues in Colorado and the inability of operators to get permits in the core of the DJ Basin, pushing operators to step out, as Fundare is doing with their current asset, formerly Whiting’s Red Tail asset. They talk about the large chunks of permits coming out of the COGCC (Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission), favoring the bigger operators.

They get into emissions, air emission standards, Fundare going tankless, and the new ozone bill being proposed in Colorado, HB23-1294. They close part one of this awesome discussion with some backstory on the regulatory environment in Colorado, Proposition 112, and the DJ development story, and they get into midstream and downstream, the ability to raise money in 2020 and the current M&A outlook. Daniel Seaver says “we are active, we are looking, and our investors are happy.”

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