Stripper well

There are over 420,000 of these wells in the United States, and together they produce nearly 915,000 barrels (145,500 m3) of oil per day, 18 percent of U.S. production.

Stripper wells are more common in older oil and gas producing regions, most notably in Appalachia, Texas and Oklahoma.

In most instances, the remaining reserves are not easily accessible when oil prices subsequently rise again: when marginal fields are abandoned, the surface infrastructure – the pumps, piping, storage vessels, and other processing equipment – is removed and the lease forfeited.

[4] Since much of this equipment was probably installed over many years, replacing it over a short period should oil prices jump upward is cost prohibitive.

Oil prices would have to rise beyond their historic highs and remain at elevated levels for many years before there would be sufficient economic justification to bring many marginal fields back into production.