Oil and gas company executives said in a survey earlier this month that persistent low prices, geopolitical uncertainty, and rising costs continue to affect their industry.

Industry activity decreased and outlooks remained pessimistic among company leaders, according to the anonymous energy survey conducted by the Dallas branch of the Federal Reserve. Respondents commented that persistently low oil and gas prices are hurting their businesses as costs continue to rise.

“Decreasing oil prices are making many of our firm’s wells noneconomic,” one respondent wrote, with the price of crude in West Texas hovering averaging $59 a barrel in early December, well below the $70 barrel seen as needed for profitability.

Natural gas prices are up compared to a slump last year, with some respondents saying they expect prices to continue to rise in 2026. However, short-term prices in regions like the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico have dipped into the negatives multiple times this year. One respondent wrote that “natural gas is becoming an expense to operators.”

“Last month, we paid our gas purchaser to take our gas because prices fell below contract price, and we paid the difference to the purchaser,” they wrote. “Never in my 50 years in the oilfield has this ever happened.”

The bank branch conducts quarterly energy surveys, with 131 companies responding over the Dec. 3-11 survey period. Of those, 90 were exploration and production companies that find and produce oil and natural gas, and 41 were oilfield services firms that support those activities.