Texas Oil Companies Work To Adapt To Falling Oil Prices

MENTONE, TX - FEBRUARY 05: Drilling pipes are viewed for the Patterson 298 natural gas fueled drilling rig on land in the Permian Basin that is owned by Apache Corporation on February 5, 2015 in Mentone, Texas.The rig, which is only 21 days old, is the first drilling rig in Texas that is 100-percent fueled by natural gas. As crude oil prices have fallen nearly 60 percent globally, many American communities that became dependent on oil revenue are preparing for hard times. Texas, which benefited from hydraulic fracturing and the shale drilling revolution, tripled its production of oil in the last five years. The Texan economy saw hundreds of billions of dollars come into the state before the global plunge in prices. Across the state drilling budgets are being slashed and companies are notifying workers of upcoming layoffs. According to federal labor statistics, around 300,000 people work in the Texas oil and gas industry, 50 percent more than four years ago. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)