As the scramble for oil and gas assets intensifies, international oil companies need to adapt to two related challenges: the resurgence of resource nationalism and stiffer competition from national oil companies as they expand beyond their borders. Alex Forbes reports IN 2000 there were only a handful of national oil companies (NOCs) with operations outside the borders of their home territory. Today, the number is close to 40 -and rising. On its own, that statement is surprising enough; when combined with other industry trends - such as the resurgence of resource nationalism and the skywards trajectory of oil prices - it adds up, in the opinion of some, to the emergence of a whole new landscape in oil and gas exploration and development. It is a landscape, argue the proponents of this view, to which international oil companies (IOCS) will need to adapt as access to reserves of oil and natural gas becomes more difficult (see Figure 1) - and more expensive.
展开▼
