The unconventional revolution, which started with shale gas but now goes well beyond it, has led to significant new hydrocarbon plays being identified. That is true in Brazil, in East Africa offshore, and all over the world, according to Christophe de Margerie, Chairman and chief executive officer of Total.
“If you take the opportunities that are being unlocked by unconventional resources and combine them with the new domains in exploration, there is a completely different environment for oil majors nowadays. In the past we were always competing for new resources, now the resource base has significantly increased. We can see ahead of us, not 30 or 40 years like before, but 100 years for oil and more than 140 years for gas,” he said.
That increasing resource base is good news for the industry as a whole but the challenge is technology and cost. According to Total, these new opportunities and resources are more expensive to develop than conventional oil and gas, and this is also the case in the Middle East which still holds very large reserves.
“We are very aware of the opportunities but also of the importance of controlling costs,” said de Margerie.
The Middle East is the second largest region in terms of hydrocarbons production for Total after Africa, and that should continue for years to come, according to Total.
“Exploration is a new theme for us in the Middle East. Five years ago we did not have so much new exploration opportunities, but today, when you look at what we have, or what we have negotiated in Iraq, Qatar, Yemen, Oman, or will do in Lebanon one day, it’s a significant change compared to what was done before,” said de Margerie.
