Fracking and Structural Shifts in Oil Supply

The adoption of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and horizontal drilling technology substantively altered the structure of oil supply. Using disaggregate state-level data from the U.S, this paper provides empirical evidence that oil supplies are now asymmetric with respect to price changes as a result of the adoption of new production methods. The changed structure of U.S. oil supply---particularly the low supply elasticities for price declines and large supply elasticities for price increases---is consistent with the ineffectiveness of OPEC policies intended to drown fracking American producers in oil.