Oil and gas investors need to weigh investment options

Producers and investors could be sitting on billions of dollars of unspent funding because of the current industry downturn

Some big oil and gas producers – as well as potential investors in the sector – may be sitting on billions of dollars of unspent funding from projects deferred during the current industry down-turn and hopes are high that a pick-up in demand in coming years will unleash a wave of fresh investment. But judging when and how much to invest will be far from straightforward, according to a new report. A failure to correctly assess the impacts of oil price volatility, the changing financial environment and the speed at which policy to mitigate climate change risks will be implemented could lead companies to either over- or under-invest in exploration and production – with potentially severe reperc