ERHC Energy Inc (ERHE)

[nordicroots]

You are most certainly correct - Standard Oil still exists under the names of its former components after it was split up due to US Federal Anti-Trust issues many decades ago. These include such pubically traded companies Exxon (now also merged with Mobil) and Chevron (now also merged with Texaco). Interestingly, these were the former parent companies for what has become the world's largest oil producer, non-publically traded Saudi Aramco (http://www.forbes.com/2010/07/09/worlds-biggest-oil-companies-business-energy-big-oil_slide.html).

There was a time in Aramco's history that there was also a great deal of angst over finding the oil that the world now takes for granted on the Arabian penninsula. Check out the video (someone posted recently on YouTube) that the company produced to recognize it's fifty year anniversary (this was way back in 1983!)(

), you will see that while confident they would find oil, there were those on the board of Standard Oil of California (now known as Chevron) that they just might not. But the Chevron geologist Max Steineke perserved and they eventually found commercial quantities of oil in what turned out to be what geologists like to refer to as an "elephant" field. History might suggest the discovery would perhaps be one of the greatest geological discoveries of all times. You might find the discussion at about 17:10 on the timeline of interest as there is discussion about how close they came to giving up on this field. And when you think about it, it really should not be surprising that boards of directors would consider issues related to capital stewardship in very practical terms on a continual basis. It also makes one wonder how many other great fields might have been missed when a decision was made for a company to pass on the opportunity to explore it or pull out prematurely.

I think these are all parts of the oil industry's rich history that makes those who are optimistic and willing to invest their hard earned capital into new ventures like ERHC eagar and willing to take a chance on being part of the next big find. And as we look back on the industry with the benefit of hindsight and some useful historical context, we see that modern day oil explorers are faced with some of the very same issues and challenges faced by earlier oil explorers. But, these days we also have the luxury of technology that allows things to move a bit more quickly - but judging by the banter back and forth on this board, perhaps not quick enough for those who seek instant gratification.

The links I provided might be fun to review over the weekend. Enjoy.