Credit Suisse expects the major US and European integrated oil companies to struggle to boost output to 2020, saying the sector is unlikely to see any volume growth over the coming cycle. However, the brokerage said Chevron is the only one of the major players where it sees the potential for volume to stay flat or even increase slightly over the coming cycle to 2020.
Credit Suisse said net production growth would be very tough for this group of companies to deliver, given the ongoing problem of decline, and the pressures to sanction new growth projects before these declines set in. “Mature decline rates, project delivery timing, maintenance, and weaker demand (for natural gas mostly) have all played their part in this,” analysts said.