According to the Wall Street Journal, "once captivated by Asia's untapped oil-and-gas riches, some midsize U.S. energy producers now are selling their Asian assets as the North American shale revolution offers bright prospects closer to home"
.Companies such as Anadarko Companies such as AnadarkoPetroleumCorp., Hess Corp. and Newfield EXPLORATION Co. recently started looking for buyers for either all or some of their Asian portfolios, together worth billions of dollars. Assets for sale include oil fields in China's Bohai Bay and natural-gas hubs in Thailand.
Pulling back from Asia may appear counterintuitive. China's energy demand alone will rise by 60% between 2010 and 2035, accounting for the largest share of growth in global energy use, according to the International Energy Agency.
But oil-and-gas producers now face more choices about where to drill. New technology that enables access to oil and natural gas trapped in dense rock formations is transforming global energy markets. The U.S. is expected to become the world's top oil producer by 2017, the IEA said last year.
With oil prices still relatively high amid declines in other commodities, the prospect of surging output in the U.S. is proving attractive to producers.
.Companies such as Anadarko Companies such as AnadarkoPetroleumCorp., Hess Corp. and Newfield EXPLORATION Co. recently started looking for buyers for either all or some of their Asian portfolios, together worth billions of dollars. Assets for sale include oil fields in China's Bohai Bay and natural-gas hubs in Thailand.
Pulling back from Asia may appear counterintuitive. China's energy demand alone will rise by 60% between 2010 and 2035, accounting for the largest share of growth in global energy use, according to the International Energy Agency.
But oil-and-gas producers now face more choices about where to drill. New technology that enables access to oil and natural gas trapped in dense rock formations is transforming global energy markets. The U.S. is expected to become the world's top oil producer by 2017, the IEA said last year.
With oil prices still relatively high amid declines in other commodities, the prospect of surging output in the U.S. is proving attractive to producers.
Andrew Williams, a Melbourne-based analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said a trend of U.S. companies selling assets is undoubtedly emerging. But he said factors other than shale oil's potential may be playing a part.
Anadarko, for example, has enjoyed so much exploration success in other parts of the world that it needs to sell some fringe assets to redirect capital to bigger projects.
Meanwhile, Hess is under pressure to unload assets after activist investors, frustrated by a string of dry holes and poor share-price performance, forced the ouster of former Chairman John Hess this year and called for a renewed focus on the U.S''.
