On a comment made on Thursday, the Royal Dutch Shell has announced that it will prioritize its U.S. shale operation’s oil production while slowing investment in natural gas. The company aims to boost its overall shale production by 200,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to 500,000 between 2017 and 2020. With this decision, around 85 percent of Shell’s shale budget for at least the next two years will go toward new oil resources. Along with Shell, other giant energy corporations’ growth targets for the next decade, like Exxon Mobil and Chevron, have also given shale oil a central role. – Reuters