Executive Summary:
Rigs: The total US rig count increased during the week of Sep 28 to 530.
Infrastructure: Phillips 66 Expands Refining in $1.4B Deal
Supply & Demand: The US natural gas pipeline sample, a proxy for change in oil production, decreased 1.3% W-o-W across all liquids-focused basins.
Rigs:
The total US rig count increased during the week of Sept. 28 to 530. Liquids-driven basins decreased 1 rig W-o-W from 407 to 406.
- Permian:
- Delaware (-2): Mewbourne Oil, ConocoPhillips
- Midland (-1): Basin Oil & Gas
- Anadarko (+1): RJM Co.
- Uinta (+1): SM Energy
Infrastructure:
On Sept. 9, Phillips 66 (PSX) announced a $1.4B deal to acquire the remaining 50% stake in WRB Refining from Cenovus Energy (CVE), giving it full ownership of the Wood River (345 Mb/d) and Borger (149 Mb/d) refineries.
The move follows the May election of Elliott Investment Management–backed directors Sigmund Cornelius and Michael Heim to PSX’s board. Elliott has invested over $2.5B in PSX and is pushing the company to sharpen its focus on downstream operations. Elliot argues the midstream segment masks the value of the refining assets.
According to PSX CEO Mark Lashier, the acquisition will generate ~$50MM per year in operational and commercial synergies by fully integrating the assets into PSX’s value chain.
Located northeast of St. Louis, Wood River is PSX’s largest US refinery and a key Midwest asset. It is partially supplied by Enbridge’s (ENB) Express-Platte system, which is set to expand by 30 Mb/d in 2026. According to East Daley Analytics’ Crude Hub Model, the Platte line has run 74% utilized in 2025, with throughput set to rise to 89% post-expansion.
MPLX’s Ozark Pipeline out of Cushing also supplies Wood River. The Ozark line has averaged high-90% throughput with a capacity of 360 Mb/d. Wood River produces gasoline, diesel, aviation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks, asphalt and petroleum coke.
Borger in northwest Texas anchors PSX’s position near the Permian Basin. The refinery connects south via PSX gathering lines that feed into Gray Oak Pipeline (6.5% PSX stake) to the Gulf Coast and north to Cushing via Navigator’s Borger Express pipeline. Throughput to the refinery has averaged 119 Mb/d over the past five years, and EDA projects volumes to average 132 Mb/d in 2026. The Borger refinery produces propane, butane, gasoline, diesel, aviation fuels and petrochemical feedstocks.
The WRB Refining acquisition consolidates PSX’s ownership in two strategically located refineries: Borger expands its inland Texas footprint beyond Gulf Coast plants, while Wood River strengthens its Midwest presence at a major crude hub. This move comes amid rising refining margins and aligns with Elliott’s push for a leaner, downstream-focused PSX.
Supply and Demand
The US natural gas pipeline sample, a proxy for change in oil production, decreased 1.3% W-o-W across all liquids-focused basins.
The Barnett sample increased 2.4%, stabilizing after two weeks of volatility. Arkoma dropped another 14.7% following a 13.1% decrease the week before. This decrease coincided with increases in Gulf of America by 1% and Anadarko by 0.2%. The Rockies and the Gulf of America have a high correlation between gas volumes and crude oil volumes, whereas the Permian and Eagle Ford basins correlation is less than 45%.
As of Oct. 16, ~1,300 Mb/d of refining capacity is offline for planned maintenance. The newly added PEMEX Deer Park refinery accounts for 270 Mb/d capacity offline due to planned maintenance lasting until Nov. 28.
Vessel traffic monitored by EDA along the Gulf Coast increased W-o-W. There were 25 vessels loaded for the week ending Oct. 11, up from 24 vessels loaded the prior week and 20 the week ending Sept. 27.
Regulatory and Tariffs:
Presented by ARBO
Tariffs:
Gray Oak Pipeline, LLC: Certain available capacity discounts were increased.
Magellan Pipeline Company, L.P.: The tariffs were revised to add a new product and to update the product grade document to be consistent with ONEOK’s product grade documents.
The above information is provided by ARBO’s Oil Pipeline Tariff Monitor. For more information on regulatory proceedings or tariff rates, please contact please contact Corey Brill via email at [email protected] or phone at 202-505-5296. https://www.goarbo.com/