, Columnist
Want to Understand the Shale Boom? Try a Microscope
All crude oil is not created equal. Once you know why, you'll understand how OPEC cuts and the U.S. oil boom are upending markets.
Machinery used to fracture shale formations, and the long-held convictions of the oil world.
Photographer: Bloomberg/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Look at much of what is written about the oil market and it may be tempting to conclude that crude oil is a homogenous commodity, the same the world over and seamlessly interchangeable. It’s not.
Once you appreciate that all crudes are not created equal, you can see how important it is that long-held expectations for a glut of the heaviest types have turned out to be incredibly wrong. Not a producer or refiner in the world is immune to this development, which is having a growing impact on prices and supplies.