Shale Oil Breaking Is OPEC's Neck

Each operator is so small, it can increase production without pushing down the market price. That makes them price â??takers,â? not price setters. And because shale wells are short-lived, producers donâ??t have to plan far ahead, says Karr Ingham, a petroleum economist in Amarillo, Texas. Singly the shale busters are nothing. Collectively, their breakneck production is breaking OPECâ??s neck. This is the remorseless, leaderless free market at work.