* ConocoPhillips ( COP ) not currently considering output boost,

executive says

* Even after driller decides to boost output, it takes 6

months to a year

* Nine months is 'very-best-case scenario,' executive

says

By Arathy Somasekhar, Georgina McCartney and Sheila Dang

HOUSTON, March 23 (Reuters) - Oil prices above $100 a

barrel would not trigger a meaningful production increase in the

U.S. unless they stay elevated for more than a quarter, shale

executives said at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston,

troubling news for consumers slammed by the energy crisis during

the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Shale producers helped make the U.S. the top producer in the

world and are often counted upon to fill supply gaps because

their operations can produce crude relatively quickly. Yet in

recent years, shale companies have focused on returning capital

to shareholders rather than growing output. Some also face

rising costs and maturing fields.

ConocoPhillips ( COP ) is not currently considering

increasing production, said Nick Olds, executive vice president

of the company's U.S. onshore lower 48 operations, adding that

ConocoPhillips ( COP ) would need to see sustained higher prices.

Iran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow

channel along its coast, ​has stopped the passage of 20% of the

world's oil, triggering global price increases of around 50%.

Still, many U.S. operators have locked in drilling plans and

budgets for the year, and prices for future months will need to

rise for companies to update those, executives said. Even then,

they said, it would take at least half a year to get the barrels

out of the ground.

"The cycle from the time you begin to when you make a

decision that you're going to add rigs to then ultimately

drilling and producing and getting to market, that can be a

year-long process, even in the U.S., which is a short-cycle

market. Nine months would be the very best-case scenario," said

Steve Gassen, SLB's executive vice president of geographies, on

the sidelines of the CERAWeek conference.

Before operators make the decision to ratchet up production,

"there needs to be a line of sight to higher oil prices for

longer. So the concern is that you're in a bit of a bell curve,

and then prices then normalize back to $60 or $65 a barrel,"

Gassen said.

SLB is having extensive dialogue with operators here in the

U.S., but they're only in the evaluation phase, Gassen added.

U.S. oil futures for October delivery are trading around $77

a barrel, roughly $11 under current prices.

The U.S. cannot produce a lot more crude in 2026, executives

said.

"We have a plan, and we cannot improvise because of the

environment, because of the price. Let's stick to the plan,"

said Francisco Gea, executive managing director of exploration

and production at Spanish major Repsol, which has

production in Texas, Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico, speaking at

CERAWeek.

Companies will accelerate or restart drilling programs if

prices stay for at least two quarters, said Linhua Guan, CEO of

Surge Energy America, one of the largest private

producers in the Midland Basin, adding that companies will look

to complete wells that have already been drilled so they can

quickly bring barrels to market at the current higher prices.

Shale operators will also look to use the high prices to

boost hedge positions, essentially locking in the higher value

for future sales, Guan added.

Smaller Texas producer Admiral Permian Resources also will

not accelerate activity at $90 a barrel as the price was not

sustainable enough to commit to increased activity, said CEO

Denzil West. The company produces about 25,000 bpd and runs two

rigs.

It would consider increasing activity if prices appear to be

consistently high for six to 12 months, West added.