However, in the longer term, companies maintain their value by finding more oil to pump (major finds have declined and replacement of reserves has been slipping), while energy consumers hope they will keep finding it to keep prices down.
BP's performance is obscured by the huge mergers with Amoco and Arco of the US that transformed its scale. Shell had a major overhaul in 1998, partly spurred by the lower oil price, that saw it impose harsh capital discipline.
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