I find that highly improbable. They would have run out of cash long ago. Or if they were super-rich from money earned elsewhere, then they would be smart enough to not throw it away like that.
Another key point you neglect is that the efficiency of fracking keeps improving, so it can turn a profit at ever lower prices.
Many did run out of cash in the last downturn. Those that survived did so by
a) external funding (that can dry up quickly) - debt and equity offerings b) high-grading their drilling inventory, only drilling the very best locations, boasting efficiency-improvements (and collecting more money) c) real technical improvements that are far from enough to be cash-flow positive long term
The efficiency is not improving as much as they make you think. It even declines when they stop drilling their best wells. They reduced their costs substantially in the downturn because they gobbled up fire-sale equiqment from bankrupt competitors, squeezed service margins etc.
All that will be gone at some point. Interest rates rise. Best wells will be drilled. Acres in the permian are damn expensive now. Service companies need to raise prices.
The 70%yoy decline rates are absolutely terrible. They will keep growing a few years, but after that they will have to drill so damn much in worse spots than now, that many will crash down quickly. Losing 70% of producing assets every year is just terrible and puts you to the full market forces. There is pretty much no way to stop drilling because that would decimate your company by 5-6% every month. So drill baby, drill!
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/01/opinion/the-next-financia...
http://ieefa.org/ieefa-u-s-more-red-flags-on-fracking-focuse...
The technology improvements (namely horizontal drilling) have just allowed the companies to suck more oil out faster. It hasn't changed the economics of it. Particularly because you're dealing with an expendable resource and to move on to the next well requires further capital investment.
Here is a great (recent) podcast that discusses exactly what I'm talking about:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2018-12-13/bethany-mcle...