The Shock Doctrine
Disaster Capitalism in Action: oil industry
Big Oil to Sign No-Bid Contracts in Iraq
Andrew E. Kramer, New York Times, June 19, 2008
"ExxonMobil, Shell, Total and BP — the original partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company — along with Chevron and a number of smaller oil companies, are in talks with Iraq's Oil Ministry for no-bid contracts to service Iraq's largest fields, according to ministry officials, oil company officials and an American diplomat.
"The deals, expected to be announced on June 30, lay the foundation for the first commercial work for the major companies in Iraq since the American invasion, and open a new and potentially lucrative country for their operations....
See also:
* "The Real Significance of the Oil Ministry's Bid Round," by Greg Muttitt at Carbonweb, July 1, 2008
* "Iraq to Award Oil Contracts to Foreign Firms," Agence France Presse, June 22, 2008
* "Big Oil Firms Ready to Sign Agreements With Iraq," Washington Post, June 20, 2008
BusinessWeek Questions if Astronomical Salaries for CEOs of US Oil Firms Due to Performance or High Oil Prices
Moira Herbst, BusinessWeek, June 17, 2008
"Energy chief executives got raises last year much bigger than in other industries. Was it pay for performance—or pay for high oil prices?....
"Executive compensation for the CEOs of the 12 largest U.S. oil outfits rose by 5.8% from 2006 to 2007, from a median of $14.6 million to a median of $15.4 million. That's more than four times the increase of compensation for S&P 500 CEOs, whose median increased by 1.3% from 2006 to 2007, or $8.7 million to $8.8 million....More striking than the rate of pay increases for executives is the size of bonuses. For U.S. companies studied, total bonuses increased by 71% year over year, from $2.1 million in 2006 to $3.5 million in 2007. Over the same period, bonuses for chief executives overall in the S&P 500 shrank 4.9%, from $1.93 million to $1.84 million....
"Equilar also analyzed compensation of top energy executives of non-U.S. companies. While making less than their American counterparts, these 13 executives saw their median compensation increase by 85.8% from 2006 to 2007, from $4.8 million in 2006 to $8.9 million in 2007."
