Exxon, Chevron’s Africa Ambitions Face Risk From State Curbs

Oil producers led by Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and Tullow Oil Plc tripled spending in sub-Saharan Africa to $30 billion a year in a decade, finding twice the U.S.’s remaining reserves. The flow of cash is now at risk as nations from Uganda to Ghana tighten control of the industry.

Explorers face being stripped of licenses or awarded less favorable contracts as governments seek to reassert authority over their natural resources. There’s also the challenge of operating in countries emerging from civil war such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone.