East Texas Bracing for $30 Oil

WHITE OAK — Oil prices that shielded Texas from the worst of the 2008 recession and a U.S. recovery as slow as molasses have lost that superpower as 2016 dawns. That’s according to KETK and the Longview News-Journal. With a barrel of U.S. oil falling 30 percent in 2015 to finish the year at $37.04 a barrel — a far cry from the $100-a-barrel mark achieved in 2008 — a Northeast Texas economy that’s still closely tied to oil’s fortunes is bracing for more hardscrabble times. “I hope we’ve seen the bottom of this,” said Stoney Lake, Vice President of Sales for White Oak compressor maker Energy Weldfab. “But if it goes down to $30 in the near future, you’ll see some layoffs. … In this area, we’re really tapped into the energy industry, and it’s a trickle effect.”

Lake said Weldfab and its 160 employees will keep a good thought. “It’s been a tough year,” he said. “We’re still here, blessed with being able to keep everybody working. I’m hoping this (dropping price) will leave sooner than later.”