A Study of Terminal Decline Rates of Oil & Gas Wells

Payne Institute Energy Finance Lab Program Director Brad Handler, Student Researchers Vandan Bhalala and Liam O’Byrne, and Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton write about how in the United States alone, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there may be nearly 4 million inadequately decommissioned oil and gas wells. They also collectively are a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, a driving force behind global warming.  A climate mitigation business model is emerging in which a project developer undertakes to properly plug a leaking abandoned wellbore to stop its fugitive emissions.  June 9, 2025.