Big Oil's Rolling in Cash, So Why Don't CEOs Want to Spend?
- Crude prices remain volatile and bosses fear cost inflation
- For now, CEOs are using their surplus cash to pay down debt
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The oil industry is rolling in cash again, but it’s not time for a party. Instead company bosses are vying to show the most monk-like devotion to austerity.
Third-quarter earnings season started with Equinor ASA Chief Executive Officer Eldar Saetre’s promise to “take good care of our cash” even as profit rose to a four-year high. His counterpart at Total SA, rugby fan Patrick Pouyanne, gave a stout commitment to “resolutely” cut costs. Staying “laser-focused on discipline” was ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance’s principal vocation.