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Once the largest oil producer in North Dakota’s Bakken shale region, Whiting lost money in four of the last five years and spiralled deeper into debt just as the COVID-19 outbreak crushed energy demand. The company’s Bakken primacy won it little praise because the region was already falling out of favour as drillers shifted to lower-cost prospects in the Permian Basin.

Touted as one of the “comeback kids” of U.S. shale by Canaccord Genuity in late 2015, Whiting said Wednesday that it’s agreed to hand most of its ownership to noteholders in exchange for erasing more than US$2.2 billion in debt, according to a statement.

US$262 Million Maturity

As many as 40 per cent of U.S. oil and gas companies could crater into bankruptcy or distress over the next two years as they grapple with a market crash and the coronavirus outbreak, according to asset manager Pickering Energy Partners LP.

Shale drillers aren’t the sole sub sector clobbered by the crash. Hornbeck Offshore Services Inc., which specializes in hauling gear to offshore drilling sites and production platforms, disclosed Wednesday that it’s negotiating a plan with creditors to ease a US$1.2 billion debt burden. The company is planning a Chapter 11 filing.

On Wednesday, Denver-based Whiting faced the maturity of US$262 million in convertible-notes . Whiting filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors in the Southern District of Texas, listing debt of US$3.6 billion and assets worth US$7.6 billion in its bankruptcy petition.