It appears that
ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) is buying its way into
one of the newest oil and gas venues. Indeed, it's a thrill a
minute for energy in Africa these days. And now, by spending
a reported $4 billion on one of the most recent areas of
success, the biggest of Big Oil has in a way legitimatized
the new play.
You may recall that a couple of weeks ago
I told you that a groupled by Texas-based
Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC), along with
Spain's
Repsol (NYSE: REP), the U.K.'s
Tullow Oil , and Australia's
Woodside Ltd. , had found oil and gas off the
coast of West Africa's Sierra Leone in a structure that may
stretch from that country to Ghana, as much as 700 miles to
the east. Anadarko had found a large discovery, perhaps 1.8
billion barrels of crude, in the Jubilee field offshore Ghana
a couple of years ago -- the field in which Exxon has now
invested.
There is no confirmation that the structure is anywhere
near as large as I've alluded to. But with Exxon opening its
wallet, the possibilities appear somewhat more likely.
Indeed, the oil industry has become more positive about the
area of late, so you'll undoubtedly read about a bevy of
wells being drilled there in the months and years ahead.
Indeed, we could have another Nigeria or Angola on our
hands.
BP (NYSE: BP) has just announced an amazing
19th discovery in Block 31 offshore Angola. Its partners in
the find were Exxon,
StatoilHydro (NYSE: STO),
Marathon (NYSE: MRO),
Total (NYSE: TOT), and Sonangol, the Angolan
state oil company. As such, while Brazil continues to be the
focal point for the world's new oil and gas discoveries,
Africa, with its
multiple productive locations, is not to be ignored.
And while all this is going on, ExxonMobil is also
displaying what the company terms "its leadership across the
natural gas value chain" at the WorldGas 2009 Conference in
Buenos Aires. As many Fools know, my strong feeling is that,
within a few years, natural gas and liquefied natural gas
will be the most
important sourcesof energy on our planet. With Exxon
currently selling 11 billion cubic feet daily, the company
will likely remain a dominant player among the publicly held
oil and gas companies.
On that basis alone, I would urge Fools to get to know
ExxonMobil better, and to consider stashing a few of its
shares in their portfolios.
ExxonMobil wears a crown of four stars awarded by
Motley Fool CAPSplayers.
Consider adding your opinion about the
king of Big
Oil.
This article was originally published as
Exxon's Newest $4 Billion Buyon
Fool.com
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