Big Oil finds more to love in deepwater exploration

Key focus: Oil industry executives, just as last year, are in Houston for the Offshore Technology Conference. Deepwater discoveries off Guyana, Namibia and the US Gulf Coast are primary topics at the event this week. — Reuters

HOUSTON: As Big Oil returns this week to the industry’s annual showcase for offshore energy projects and equipment in Houston, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC), where deepwater discoveries off Guyana, Namibia and the US Gulf Coast will take the spotlight.

Offshore exploration had dimmed after the US shale boom ushered in new and cheaper-to-tap supplies of oil and as past offshore cost overruns pushed deepwater projects onto the industry’s backburner.