Prices are sky-high, with profits to match. But
looking further ahead, the industry faces a dramatic
change, says an expert of energy.
'The time when we could count cheap oil and S1.______
even cheaper natural gas is clear ending.' That was S2.______
the gloomy forecast delivered in February by Dave
O'Reilly,the chairman of Chevron Texaco, to hundreds
of oilman gathered for a conference in Houston. S3.______
The following month, Venezuela's President Hugo
Chavez gleefully(愉快的) echoed the sentiment:
'world should forget about cheap oil.' S4.______
The surge in oil prices, from $10 a barrel in 1998
to above $50 in early 2005, has prompted talk of a
new era of sustaining higher prices. But whenever a S5.______
'new era' in oil is hailed, scepticism(怀疑论) is in
order. Confusingly, though, there are also signs which S6.______
high oil prices may be caused by a speculative bubble
that could burst quite suddenly. To see which camp
is right, two questions need answer: why did the oil S7.______
price soar? And what could keep it high?
The recent volatility in prices is only one of
several challenges face the oil industry. Although at S8.______
first sight Big Oil seems to be in rude health, posting
record profits, this survey will argue that the western
oil majors will have their work cut out to cope the rise S9.______
of resource nationalism, which threatens to choke off
access to new oil reserves. This is essential to replace
their existing reserves, they are rapidly S10.______
declining. They will also have to respond to efforts
by governments to deal with oil's serious environmental
and geopolitical side-effects. Together, these challenges
could yet wipe out the oil majors.
【S1】