Are Global Oil, Gas Reserves Cause for Panic?

摘要

Much has been written in the press recently about the high-profile downward reserve revisions and re-categorizations at, among others, the Royal Dutch/Shell Group and El Paso Corp. According to John Thieroff, an analyst for Standard and Poor's in New York, with this heightened awareness of oil and gas reserve reporting has come increased scrutiny of the many issues related to the quantification, accounting, and verification of reserves. At Standard & Poor's, the ability to confidently assess an oil and gas company's current reserves, future production, and costs to develop and produce these reserves is critical to evaluating creditworthiness. Understanding how these various pieces interact and the latitude for discretion available to companies lies at the core of assessing oil and gas producers' business risk.