A decade after the 2008 recession, oil and natural gas production and production gains are on the rise.
The most recent quarter from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed a 3.5 percent jump in the value of the energy sector, driven largely by oil and mining.
It’s a huge improvement from a year ago, when oil and coal production only increased 1.4 percent, according to a recent study by the Institute for Energy Research.
The new boom in oil and energy production comes at a time when oil prices are near record lows.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, has fallen nearly 40 percent since February, while prices for other commodities have surged.
It seems natural for oil companies to be bullish on the outlook, but the new oil boom has some other concerns.
Oil prices could spike again soon, and that could put the brakes on a new energy boom, as the industry is still reeling from the devastating impact of Hurricane Harvey.
For some companies, the boom has been too good to pass up.
The oil and chemical company Schlumberger, for example, saw a 6.9 percent increase in its revenue last quarter, and its share price has more than tripled since the recession.
Schlumberger CEO Michael Schoen said in a statement that the company’s $1.3 billion acquisition of oil and chemicals company Schluter last year was a “strategic and strategic value move” that was “designed to position the company for the future.”
The acquisition also brought Schlumbergers expertise in the field of energy-related products, and it will continue to do so.
“This acquisition provides us with the best resources in the world, and we will use them to leverage our combined expertise to support Schlumberging’s energy portfolio,” Schoen added.
In addition to the new energy-heavy businesses, Schlumberg is also acquiring oil refineries and chemicals companies, like SunocoPhillips.
Schlumbergs purchase of Sunoco, which has been the subject of a wide-ranging investigation by the Justice Department, came at a crucial time for Sunoco.
According to a federal investigation, Sunoco was aware that it was paying a $1 million penalty to settle allegations that it paid bribes to Mexican officials to steer the country’s oil exports to the U