Oil prices seen recovering in H1 this year

Houston

OIL prices will recover as early as the first half of this year as producers cut back, Continental Resources Inc founder and chief executive Harold Hamm said on Wednesday.

Mr Hamm said Continental, the largest leaseholder and producer in the Bakken shale play of North Dakota and Montana, can weather low crude prices "forever" as it idles wells. He expects other drillers to cut spending by 50 to 75 per cent, in line with Continental's announced reductions.

"A lot of people think, well, if you start drilling, you've got about a six-month pro…