OIL majors flush with cash from high crude prices appear to be voting with their feet and heading for new exploration and production frontiers offshore Africa and South America. This shift contrasts with decisions by some operators to pull back investments from more mature areas such as the US Gulf of Mexico and UK North Sea. The trend is most pronounced when it comes to frontier exploration or greenfield developments. Some of this is explained by geology, with spectacular discoveries offshore Brazil, Guyana and, more recently, Suriname and Namibia less likely to be replicated in more mature basins. A welcoming stance towards oil and gas investment also plays a part. As Western leaders steer their nations towards clean energy, an ambivalent vision for hydrocarbons has arguably caused projects and even licensing processes to stumble. African nations, on the other hand, are putting out the welcome mat to those willing to invest in the search for oil and gas. The dichotomy is evident in the upstream strategies of international oil companies now raking in the cash with high crude prices but committed to eliminating all emissions by mid-century. TotalEnergies' decision to scrap involvement in the North Platte development of the US Gulf raised the temperature of debate this month.
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