Dry Hole Expense
Freeport-McMoRan Inc. Dry Hole Expense decreased by 26.9% to $38.00M in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric declined by 2.6%, from $39.00M to $38.00M. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Dry Hole Expense shows an upward trend with a 36.7% CAGR. This increase may warrant attention — for this metric, lower values are generally preferred.
Analysis
How to read this metric
An increase suggests lower exploration success rates, which can negatively impact long-term reserve replacement and capital efficiency.
Detailed definition
This represents the costs associated with drilling exploratory wells that fail to discover commercial quantities of hydr...
Peer comparison
Specific to upstream oil and gas; peers with higher exploration focus will naturally report higher dry hole expenses.
cop_dry_hole_expenseHistorical Data
| Q2 '21 | Q3 '21 | Q4 '21 | Q1 '22 | Q2 '22 | Q3 '22 | Q4 '22 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q4 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $14.00M | $15.00M | $19.00M | $24.00M | $25.00M | $38.00M | $28.00M | $31.00M | $42.00M | $30.00M | $34.00M | $37.00M | $40.00M | $38.00M | $41.00M | $39.00M | $46.00M | $55.00M | $52.00M | $38.00M |
| QoQ Change | — | +7.1% | +26.7% | +26.3% | +4.2% | +52.0% | -26.3% | +10.7% | +35.5% | -28.6% | +13.3% | +8.8% | +8.1% | -5.0% | +7.9% | -4.9% | +17.9% | +19.6% | -5.5% | -26.9% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +78.6% | +153.3% | +47.4% | +29.2% | +68.0% | -21.1% | +21.4% | +19.4% | -4.8% | +26.7% | +20.6% | +5.4% | +15.0% | +44.7% | +26.8% | -2.6% |
Business Segments
| Segment | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morenci | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | $8.00M |
| Atlantic Copper Smelting & Refining | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Grasberg Segment | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | $0.00 |
| Molybdenum | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $1.00M | $0.00 | — | — |
| Rod & Refining | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Total | $40.00M | $38.00M | $41.00M | $39.00M | $46.00M | $55.00M | $52.00M | $38.00M |
Molybdenum was previously reported and has since been discontinued or reclassified. Only currently active segments are shown in the chart.
Geographic Breakdown
| Segment | Q4 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | $7.00M | $12.00M | $14.00M | $8.00M | $10.00M | $12.00M | $13.00M | $15.00M |
| South America | $6.00M | $4.00M | $5.00M | $2.00M | $5.00M | $4.00M | $4.00M | $3.00M |
| Total | $34.00M | $37.00M | $40.00M | $38.00M | $41.00M | $39.00M | $46.00M | $55.00M |
North America, South America were previously reported and have since been discontinued or reclassified. Only currently active segments are shown in the chart.
Dry Hole Expense at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s dry hole expense?
- Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX) reported dry hole expense of $38.00M in Q1 2026.
- How has Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s dry hole expense changed year-over-year?
- Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s dry hole expense decreased by 2.6% year-over-year, from $39.00M to $38.00M.
- What is the long-term trend for Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s dry hole expense?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s dry hole expense has grown at a 36.7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $55.00M to $192.00M.
- What does dry hole expense mean?
- The cost of drilling wells that do not result in profitable oil or gas production.