VOL. XLII

No. 05

1-February-1999

GENERAL

Mergers And The Oil Industry

By Robert Mabro

The following commentary on the current "mergerfrenzy" in the oil industry was witten for MEES by Robert Mabro, Directorof the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

The merger frenzy to which the oil industry is succumbingtoday should not be attributed to the recent price collapse. Prices fall andrise in the short period; mergers are designed to last for a much longer while.

Companies seek to merge, so desperately...