Austin, Texas – Citing the latest Current Employment Statistics (CES) report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO) today highlighted new employment figures showing a decline in upstream employment for the month of June 2024. According to TIPRO’s analysis, direct Texas upstream employment for June totaled 189,100, representing a decrease of 2,000 industry jobs from May employment numbers, subject to revisions.
TIPRO’s new workforce data yet again indicated strong job postings for the Texas oil and natural gas industry. According to the association, there were 11,274 active unique jobs postings for the Texas oil and natural gas industry last month, including 4,364 new job postings added during the month by companies. In comparison, the state of California had 4,100 unique job postings last month, followed by Florida (1,990), New York (1,612), Pennsylvania (1,381) and Louisiana (1,241). TIPRO reported a total of 54,777 unique job postings nationwide last month within the oil and natural gas sector.
Among the 19 specific industry sectors TIPRO uses to define the Texas oil and natural gas industry, Gasoline Stations with Convenience Stores led in the ranking for unique job listings in June with 2,620 postings, followed by Support Activities for Oil and Gas Operations (2,610) and Crude Petroleum Extraction (954). The leading three cities by total unique oil and natural gas job postings were Houston (3,350), Midland (821) and Odessa (464), said TIPRO.
The top three companies ranked by unique job postings in June were Cefco (880), Love’s (687) and Baker Hughes (605), according to the association. Of the top ten companies listed by unique job postings last month, five companies were in the services sector, followed by three in the gasoline stations with convenience stores category, one midstream company and one upstream company. Top posted industry occupations for June included first-line supervisors of retail sales workers (528), maintenance and repair workers, general (344) and heavy tractor-trailer truck drivers (329). The top posted job titles for June included store managers (180), customer service representatives (169) and maintenance people (112).
Top qualifications for unique job postings included valid Driver’s License (1,763), Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) (235) and CDL Class A License (197). TIPRO reports that 39 percent of unique job postings had no education requirement listed, 34 percent required a bachelor’s degree and 29 percent required a high school diploma or GED. There were 2,204 advertised salary observations (20 percent of the 11,274 matching postings) with a median salary of $62,300. The highest percentage of advertised salaries (30 percent) were in the $90,000 to $500,000 range.
Additional TIPRO workforce trends data:
- A sample of 500 industry job postings in Texas for June 2024 can be viewed here.
- The top three posting sources in June included www.indeed.com (5,173), www.simplyhired.com (3,131) and www.dejobs.org (1,532).
TIPRO also highlights recent data released from the Texas comptroller’s office showing significant tax contributions provided by the Texas oil and natural gas industry during the month of June. Texas energy producers last month paid $493 million in oil production taxes, up 8 percent from June 2023. Producers in June also contributed an additional $171 million in revenue from natural gas production taxes, down 7 percent from June 2023. Revenue collected from oil and natural gas severance taxes is used help to support and pay for important public services across the Lone Star State, including road and infrastructure investments, water conservation projects, schools and education, first responders and more.
Additionally, TIPRO notes new projections for production levels in the Permian Basin and Eagle Ford Shale. New data recently released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts crude oil production in the Permian Basin to average nearly 6.39 million barrels per day (b/d) in July of 2024. The EIA’s latest outlook also projects oil production in the Eagle Ford likely will remain stable and hover around 1.1 million b/d in July. Natural gas production in Texas this summer also is expected to remain robust, EIA data shows.
Also this week, Texans for Natural Gas (TNG), an educational campaign managed by TIPRO, offered analysis based on a recent EIA report showing that the percent of natural gas production that was vented or flared in the U.S. decreased from 1.3 percent in 2018 and 2019 to approximately 0.5 percent in 2023, even as natural gas production increased to record levels. The EIA estimates this will be the lowest rate of venting and flaring recorded in the U.S. in the past 18 years. In Texas, natural gas operators performed well, substantially reducing the percentage of natural gas volumes vented or flared from 2.6 percent in 2018 to an estimated 0.5 percent in 2023, resulting in an over 99 percent utilization of all gas produced.
Flaring, a necessary safety process in the production of oil and gas, occurs most commonly in areas where natural gas production grows faster than processing and pipeline capacity. Building new pipelines, like the Matterhorn Express Pipeline, that is scheduled to come online this year, will not only provide necessary takeaway capacity, but will also supply energy to end-users, contribute to local and state tax revenues and create well-paying jobs, according to TIPRO.
Moreover, Texans are demanding more energy. ERCOT, Texas’ grid operator, projected demand for electricity could nearly double by 2030 amid the rise of data centers, an increase in the state’s population and the electrification of major industries like oil and gas production. More than a third of the forecasted growth comes from oil and gas operators in the Permian Basin that are electrifying operations as part of their effort to reduce emissions.
Production v. Flaring Patterns
According to data from the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC), December 2019 was a milestone for natural gas production in Texas, reaching one of the highest peaks in decades at 914.49 million cubic feet (MMCF). That same month, amid record production, flaring reached one of its lowest volumes for the year at 14.57 MMCF – slightly higher than May’s record low of 14.45 MMCF, representing a nearly 15 percent decrease from the 2019 flaring volume average. Texas producers have continued to improve flaring, particularly in the Permian where flaring intensity – the amount of gas flared for every barrel of oil equivalent of oil and gas produced – decreased by 66 percent during the record high production in the region between 2019 and the end of 2022.
Flaring reduction trends continued throughout 2023. In March, production in Texas peaked at 1,040.54 MMCF marking the year’s lowest flared volume at 8.03 MMCF. By September, the flaring rate decreased to 1.14 percent indicating that over 98 percent of gas produced in Texas was effectively utilized, according to the RRC. December was also among the highest producing months of the year in the state, reaching 1,043.15 MMCF with flaring volumes also significantly reduced to 8.70 MMCF.
Successful reductions in flaring reached record lows in 2024, while production remained high. This past March, Texas hit its second-highest production level of the year, while also setting one of the lowest flared volumes of the decade, reaching 6.65 MMCF. In April 2024, flaring fell even further, hitting a new decade low of 6.63 MMCF, significantly lower than the 2023 and 2019 flared volume averages of 10.17 MMCF and 17.13 MMCF, respectively. On a percentage basis, the flaring rate was 0.78 percent in April, meaning more than 99 percent of gas produced in Texas was being beneficially used. 2024 data shows nearly a 50 percent decrease in flared volumes over the past five years for the Lone Star State.
“Producers in the United States and Texas are continuously demonstrating their commitment to meeting energy demand and operating in a responsible manner, but we need common sense policy at the federal level to support domestic production and the buildout of additional energy infrastructure,” said Ed Longanecker, president of TIPRO.
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