Crude oil production in the U.S.’s portion of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) is poised to top 2 MMb/d for the first time in six years — and only the third time ever. New floating production units (FPUs) and subsea tiebacks keep coming online. And a newcomer to the U.S. GOM, U.K.-based Harbour Energy, just announced a multibillion-dollar deal to acquire LLOG Exploration, a leading Gulf player. As we’ll discuss in today’s RBN blog, a lot is happening in the U.S.’s second-largest oil production area.
Canadian crude output is rising, requiring new export routes. As traditional pathways face constraints, the U.S. Rockies—especially the Guernsey, WY hub—are emerging as key corridors for moving Canadian heavy crude to downstream markets, including the Gulf Coast.
It’s been a long and winding road for Gulf of Mexico production. In the early 2000s, the GOM was churning out more than 1.6 MMb/d of crude oil, twice as much as in the early 1980s. But production (teal line in Figure 1 below) was set back by hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 (dashed red oval), Gustav and Ike in 2008 (dashed green oval), and the Macondo disaster in 2010. In response to that incident, which resulted in the loss of 11 lives and the release of more than 4 MMbbl of oil, the federal government declared a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling. GOM production sagged (dashed yellow oval) and didn’t return to pre-Macondo levels until 2016-17.
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About the song
“Back in the Saddle” was written by Luke Combs, Dan Isbell and Jonathan Singleton. It is the lead single for Luke Combs’s upcoming sixth studio album. Using cowboy imagery, the song is about a man who seeks to recapture the spark that leads to a return to former glories. A video directed by Tyler Adams shows Combs at a speedway where Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Richard Petty drive Earnhardt’s #8 NASCAR race car hard around the track. Produced by Luke Combs, Jonathan Singleton and Chip Matthews, the single was released in July 2025 and went to #1 on the Billboard Country Airplay and #22 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles charts. It features a blistering guitar solo by Combs’s touring guitarist, Kurt Ozan.The song is featured on the Madden NFL 26 soundtrack album. Personnel on the record were: Luke Combs (lead vocal), Bob McNelley, Sol Philcox-Littlefield (electric guitar), Kurt Ozan (guitar solo), Steve Mackey (bass), Todd Lambard (resonator guitar, banjo), Dave Cohen (keyboards), Jerry Roe (drums), and Jonathan Singleton and Chip Matthews (backing vocals).
Luke Combs is an American country music singer and songwriter. While attending college at Appalachian State University, he started singing in the bars around Boone, NC. Relocating to Nashville in 2014 to pursue a career in country music, he put out three independent EPs before signing with Sony Music Nashville. He released his debut LP, This One’s for You, in 2017. He has released five studio albums, four EPs and 20 singles, and has sold more than 168 million units worldwide. Combs has won one ACM Award, seven Billboard Music Awards and three CMA Awards. He still records and tours and will be playing U.S. stadium dates beginning in March 2026 before embarking on an international tour in May 2026.
"About the Song" -- written by Mickey McMahan , RBN Director of Musicology
