International oil companies are trying to secure new acreage abroad to fight growth challenges. European majors such as BP and Shell are returning to oil and gas rather than shifting quickly into renewable energy. In the United States, many think domestic production has already peaked due to lower oil prices, prime shale acreage drying up and more. In China, despite the government’s call for more domestic oil and gas exploration and production, national oil companies know that the geological reality means domestic oil and gas resources will not be sufficient to meet energy needs.
European IOCs Lead the Way
In March, BP signed a major redevelopment project in Kirkuk in Northern Iraq. The initial program could unlock 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent production. Through its joint venture with Azule Energy with Italian major ENI, BP also entered deepwater exploration acreage in Namibia, one of the hottest spots for global exploration. CEO Murray Auchicloss said the company is also evaluating new bid round blocks in Libya.
Contrastingly, Shell has largely focused its international growth around expanding its industry-leading liquefied natural gas portfolio. In April, Shell completed its acquisition of Singapore-based Pavilion Energy, adding 6.5 million tonnes per annum of capacity to its LNG supply portfolio. Shell also recently said that it will add 12 million tons per annum of capacity from Canada, Qatar, Nigeria and the UAE by 2030.
Italian major ENI has a leading presence among IOCs in Indonesia, having acquired Chevron’s assets there in 2023. ENI also said that it is looking into the upcoming bid round in Libya, where it has historically been a major player as gas pipelines connect Italy and Libya.
Unlike other European IOCs, which exited Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, French leader TotalEnergies is still operating its Yamal LNG project and holds partial equity in Russian gas company Novatek. TotalEnergies is also trying to renegotiate fiscal terms with the Namibian government to enable commercialization of its deepwater oil discoveries, and it is the reported front runner to join Galp Energia for its large Mopane oil discovery in Namibia. If TotalEnergies joins Galp, Namibia could eventually become TotalEnergies’ “Guyana” with multiple FPSO production hubs.
U.S. Companies Venture Overseas
Strong U.S. shale portfolios have provided a competitive advantage for American majors ExxonMobil and Chevron over their European peers. It’s also reduced the urgency for the two to grow in oil and gas. Even so, ExxonMobil and Chevron have always been among the biggest players in the international arena. Key overseas areas for ExxonMobil include Guyana, Qatar and Brazil, and Chevron’s include Australia, Angola and Kazakhstan.
Chevron has returned to deepwater in Namibia, where it found the Kudu Gas Field 51 years ago. The Kudu field was the only oil and gas discovery for almost half a century until recent deepwater oil and gas discoveries in the Orange Basin. ExxonMobil has taken a different approach in Namibia, capturing three deepwater blocks in the Namibe Basin rather than competing in the crowded Orange Basin.
American independents such as ConocoPhillips, Occidental and EOG have even higher percentages of their upstream portfolios concentrated domestically. The shale revolution has provided tremendous growth for these independents, especially in the Permian. As a result, U.S. crude production reached a record high of 13.5 million barrels per day in Q2 2025, according to the Energy Information Administration of the Department of Energy.
However, U.S. crude production is projected to decline, due to lower oil prices and reduced capital investment by independents. Also, after some 17 years of growth, quality acreage in the shale basins is hard to find. Many American companies have used mergers and acquisitions to replenish their shale oil and gas drilling inventory, increasingly moving beyond prime basins like the Permian.
This shift might force independents to consider looking overseas again, albeit at a relatively low level thus far. Three recent examples are unconventional deals that EOG signed in the Middle East, one in Bahrain and one in the United Arab Emirates , and Continental Resources’ entry into unconventional plays in Turkey.
Chinese and Asian NOCs Trail
The Chinese national oil companies have been bit hard by their aggressive international expansion a decade ago. Their relative inexperience in international dealmaking led them to overpay for international assets when oil prices were high. There were a few exceptions, such as CNOOC’s entry into Guyana, Sinopec’s entry into Angola and CNPC’s growth in Iraq.
Since 2019, the Chinese government has heavily emphasized domestic oil and gas exploration and development, and China has maintained oil production and grown gas production for the past five years. Chinese companies have also made some headway in domestic shale oil and gas production, with new play types and concepts. Nonetheless, domestic production could not keep up with the energy demand growth in the country: China now relies on more than 70-percent oil import and 40-percent gas import to meet its energy needs.
There are signs that Chinese NOCs are trying to regrow their international portfolios – more carefully this time around. CNPC and Sinopec have recently signed deals for small equities in Qatar LNG. CNOOC also signed the first exploration block with state company KMG in Kazakhstan.
Where to Look?
Three countries with the largest oil and gas resources are politically stranded: Russia, Iran and Venezuela. It does not seem that the IOCs will want to invest in these countries anytime soon. The Middle East has the largest oil and gas resources, but some locales, such as Saudi Arabia, are not accessible to international exploration and production companies. Some limited openings are available in the UAE, Oman and Kuwait, with Kuwait more for technical service-type contracts.
Perhaps, Canada will become a magnet for international investment with the new Canadian government promising more independence for energy exports and investment in making Canada’s oil and gas pipelines reach the Pacific and Atlantic basins.