Demand for Texas Upstream Talent Persists Despite Employment Drop

Despite a slight drop in monthly employment numbers in February, Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO), citing Current Employment Statistics (CES) data, noted that the demand for talent in the Texas upstream sector persists.

According to TIPRO’s analysis, direct Texas upstream employment for February 2023 totaled 197,900, a decrease of 700 jobs from January employment numbers. TIPRO indicates that this drop in employment is likely a statistical anomaly given the positive job posting data for the month, workforce trends and that revised CES numbers will ultimately likely show an uptick in upstream employment in February.

Texas upstream employment in February 2023 represented the addition of 20,100 positions compared to February 2022, including an increase of 900 jobs in oil and natural gas extraction and 19,200 jobs in the services sector, TIPRO says.

TIPRO’s new employment data also indicated strong job postings for the Texas oil and natural gas industry for the month of February. According to the association, there were 11,981 active unique jobs postings for the Texas oil and natural gas industry in February, including 4,601 new job postings added in the month by companies.

The top three companies ranked by unique job postings in February were John Wood Group (640), Loves (632) and Baker Hughes (575), according to TIPRO. Top posted industry occupations for February included maintenance and repair workers (374), heavy tractor-trailer truck drivers (356), and managers (320).

Additionally, TIPRO reports that oil and gas production is forecasted to continue to climb in the coming months. Crude oil output in the Permian Basin is projected to hit a record 5.62 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), with production expected to rise in the basin by 26,000 bpd.

In the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas, oil output next month will gain 9,000 bpd to total 1.13 million bpd. Overall, U.S. crude oil production is estimated to go up by 68,000 bpd to top 9.21 million bpd in April, projects the EIA.

Natural gas production also will grow in April – EIA projections show total natural gas output in the United States will increase by approximately 420 million cubic feet per day (Mmcf/D) to reach a record 96.62 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d).

This will in part be driven by production gains from the Permian Basin, where output will go up by 93 Mmcf/D to hit a record high of 22.5 bcf/d. Natural gas production in the Eagle Ford Shale is also forecasted to reach 7.12 bcf/d in April, up 74 Mmcf/d from projected March levels, TIPRO’s statement reads.

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