Drilling and Debt
利用69家油气企业的项目级数据，发现高杠杆公司会提前完成项目以牺牲长期回报为代价，这种行为在债务重新谈判前尤为明显，旨在提升抵押品价值以缓解贷款摩擦。
ABSTRACT This paper documents a previously unrecognized debt‐related investment distortion. Using detailed project‐level data for 69 firms in the oil and gas industry, we find that highly levered firms pull forward investment, completing projects early at the expense of long‐run project returns and project value. This behavior is particularly pronounced prior to debt renegotiations. We test several channels that could explain this behavior and find evidence consistent with equity holders sacrificing long‐run project returns to enhance collateral values and, by extension, mitigate lending frictions at debt renegotiations.