Nearly half of all rigs working in the U.S. are currently deployed in the Permian Basin. But a shortage of truckers to transport crude, as well as the sand and water used in fracking, is threatening to slow a drilling boom that has helped lift U.S. oil production this year to all-time highs, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Pipelines filled to the brim are forcing some producers to truck oil hundreds of miles to markets in Oklahoma and along the Gulf Coast, setting off a bidding war for qualified truckers in this corner of West Texas and New Mexico, where many drivers already make more than $100,000 a year.
It doesn’t help that the trucking industry nationwide is struggling to hire and retain drivers, with the overall freight market one of the strongest in years.
With U.S. unemployment at an 18-year low of 3.8%, carriers are having a hard time competing with jobs in construction or other energy-sector jobs that offer more nights at home or better pay.
Energy-transportation companies are offering significant pay increases—hiking salaries to almost double what a traditional driver earns—to attract and retain drivers, and some are hiring people without a commercial driver’s license and then sending them to get certified.
