This strategy, of ramping up investment in maturefields, is the same one he has applied through the other four big shelf acquisitions Exxi has made since its founding in 2005.
Their size allows them to specialise in niche activities for instance, pumping out the last drips of oil from mature fields which giant firms tend to avoid because they take up so much management time.
Meanwhile, supply constraints from the decline in maturefields in Mexico, Norway and the North Sea in respect to rising demand for oil in China and India, are also pressures going toward higher prices.
Energy industry experts predict the EU will import 90 percent of its oil and 80 percent of its natural gas within 20 years as onshore and offshore fields become mature.