‘That’s going to send a shock through the system.’


— Doug Lawler, CEO of Continental Resources

That’s Doug Lawler, chief executive of Continental Resources, the shale-drilling giant controlled by billionaire Harold Hamm, telling Bloomberg News on Monday that crude prices are set to remain elevated and could press to the $120- to $150-a-barrel range without new production.

More price pressure is coming, he said, unless policies are put in place to encourage more output.

West Texas Intermediate crude
CL00,
-0.11%

CL.1,
-0.11%
,
the U.S. benchmark, edged back below $90 a barrel on Monday but remains up more than 34% from its 52-week low of $66.74 hit on March 17. Brent crude
BRN00,
-0.21%
,
the global benchmark, has rallied 30% from a 52-week low of $71.84 a barrel set on June 12.

Lawler said he thought oil “absolutely” would hit the $100-a-barrel threshold and that he expects to see continued volatility in the $80- to $100-a-barrel price environment.