Copyright © 2007, Richard Clough
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The Truth Behind Gas Prices
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Chapter 2
How Did These Money- Guzzling Corporations Come to Be?
There are many factors to consider when identifying the top five oil
companies operating in the United States. Some of these factors include:
Revenues, Income, Assets, Exploration and Production spending, Oil
Reserves, Market Capitalization and whether or not the companies are
Fully Integrated. In terms of 2004 Market Capitalization, the following
chart shows how the top five companies rate:
Company Market Cap
1. Exxon-Mobil $361.6 billion
2. BP-Arco $221.8 billion
3. Royal Dutch-Shell $210.3 billion
4. Chevron-Texaco $114.5 billion
5. Conoco-Phillips $74.9 billion
In terms of company’s assets as of 2004:
Company Assets
Exxon Mobil $195 Billion
BP Arco $194 Billion
Royal Dutch Shell $133 Billion
Chevron Texaco $93 Billion
Conoco Phillips $93 Billion
Total $708 BILLION
Some of these companies have more assets than the Gross National
Product (GNP) of the countries they do business with. For example the
country of Ecuador, which exported over 38 million barrels of crude oil
into California in 2003, has a GNP of $45 billion. This $45 billion equates
to less than half the assets of the smallest Big 5 company, Conoco
Phillips. Another example can be found with the country of Saudi Arabia,
the largest OPEC country to export oil to the United States. This
country's GNP is measured at $190 billion, almost equal to the assets of
Exxon Mobil, the largest private oil company in the World. For private
companies we are talking about some of the largest and most powerful
businesses in the World.
Our focus will primarily be on the Big 5 oil companies, but we’ll also take
some time to examine some of the lesser known companies who
consequently could be considered the next five largest integrated oil
companies. Let’s look at who they are, how they got where they are and
where they’re headed:
Exxon-Mobil - Number one on the list is the largest publicly traded oil
company in the world. This company is based in Irving, TX. It has
approximately 88,000 employees. Its total revenue reported in 2004 was
$298 billion with net income of $25.3 billion. Exxon Mobil operates in over
200 countries and territories. This company’s merger was complete in
1999 and is considered by many to be the first of the oil mega mergers. It
has been reported that since the Exxon Mobil merger, total cost savings
have been five billion dollars. One would think that if such a large sum of
money was saved through the merger, the consumer should have
benefited by decreased fuel costs. That didn’t happen...........
