An excellent article in today’s WSJ on Petrobras, one of the New Seven Sisters. I highly recommend a complete read, but of particular note was the following:

“…Today, Petrobras boasts more crude reserves than Chevron Corp., lower costs of finding oil than Exxon Mobil Corp., and a listing on the New York Stock Exchange — with a market value of around $130 billion….

…Three-quarters of the world’s reserves are now in the hands of national oil companies, according to the International Energy Agency. ConocoPhillips Chairman James Mulva recently said that the top publicly owned international oil companies now have direct access to only about 5% of the world’s oil reserves, with an additional 30% theoretically open through joint ventures….

…Most national companies are far less efficient at developing their reserves than Petrobras, whose full name is Petróleo Brasileiro SA. Production at giant Petróleos de Venezuela SA has fallen by one-quarter since President Hugo Chávez took office in 1999 and started milking the company’s coffers to fund social programs. Indonesia, whose state energy company has had a history of graft and cronyism, recently turned into a net oil importer from an exporter.

….The entry of foreign companies ratcheted up competitive pressure and helped ignite a productivity revolution inside Petrobras. Over the past decade, the company has doubled oil production, boosted reserves by about 50%, and expanded internationally from Argentina to India….”