16 PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY, ECONOMICS, AND POLITICS
However, while some of those companies are indeed among the
largest in the world, by many important measures, a majority of the
largest oil companies are state-owned, national oil companies. By
conventional definitions, national oil companies hold the majority of
petroleum reserves and produce the majority of the world's supply
of crude oil. Because national oil companies generally hold exclusive
rights to the exploration and development of petroleum resources
within the home country, they also can decide on the degree to which
they require participation by private companies in those activities.
Rankings of oil companies can be based on current production
(Table 1.1) to generate current earnings, and several standards need
to be applied to assess the evolving nature of the companies in the
industry to ensure the future viability of the enterprise on reserve
positions (Table 1.2). Investment, in the form of exploration and
development expenditures, serves as an indicator of the potential
reserve and production positions of an oil company.
Privately held companies have the goal of maximizing shareholder value. The management of the company may accomplish
Table 1.1 Comparative ranking of the top ten oil companies based on
current liquids production.
Rank
2006
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Company
Saudi
Aramco
NIOC
Pemex
PDV
KPC
BP
ExxonMobil
PetroChina
Shell
Sonotrach
Production
11,035
4,049
3,710
2,650
2,643
2,562
2,523
2,270
2,093
1,934
Rank
2000
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Company
Saudi
Aramco
NIOC
Pemex
PDV
INOC
ExxonMobil
Shell
PetroChina
BP
KPC
Production
8,044
3,620
3,343
2,950
2,528
2,444
2,268
2,124
2,061
2,025