The Permian Basin: A Fragmented Environment

The core of Exxon's operations is now so profitable, it gives you a little bit of pause thinking about investments in renewables. The company has pioneered the use of variable dividends and they just pay out a fraction of earnings almost in a mechanical way. Occidental made a big bet in buying an adarco a few years ago. They were punished initially and then rewarded enormously afterwards. It'll be interesting to see if big oil can really succeed in pushing that envelope under the current regime - which I think is what they're going to try to do.