Word today Shell is in early discussions to buy BP. Could be some consolidation. Do you see more consolidation and possible dance partners?

I have no scuttlebutt on deals. Let me know if you find some.

What I do see is a general retreat - especially Shell and BP - from their rush to spin off O&G and focus on renewables. I'm enjoying my schadenfreude. Spinning off O&G assets may have helped their environment footprint, but did nothing to reduce world CO2 emissions. Just shifted them to another owner. And they brought no competitive advantages to wind and solar. It was politically driven, not logically sound. Now they are paying the price of underinvesting in O&G - and realizing they must refocus on it to make any competitive returns. Acquisitions are a logical route to try - consolidation benefits and better scale. But that doesn't help them actually improve reserves - just changes ownership. And they're starting to reorganize their operations for higher efficiency. Chevron is also moving in that direction - but they never pulled back the way Shell and BP did. They just slowed down and underinvested.

Exxon and Darren Woods spelled this all out in early 2018 - and caught hell from the analyst community. XOM had already acquired some great assets on the cheap during the Saudi-Russia price wars, and their focus was on developing them. Guyana, Permian, natural gas for LNG, Brazil, etc. They "leaned in" when others were backing away. Competitors were cutting back on capex and focusing on buybacks. And Woods has completely reorganized XOM - saving $13 billion a year run rate so far on the way to $18 billion. They're now seven years ahead of their major competitors. And it was done when interest rates and were much lower. A third key was focusing on breakthrough technologies and not cutting back on R&D.

So let others play catchup. As XOM said in their last plan update, XOM's now playing in a league of their own. And continuing to pull away from the pack in terms of performance.

Vickie, the OXY CEO, said in the interview that Buffett was bullish on oil prices. If so, it makes no sense that he's not actively buying XOM. XOM has done $20 billion in buybacks without moving the market, and expects the same in 2026. How much could BRK have deployed? Woods was very happy to be buying back the stock he issued for Pioneer at $105 a share and under. So the current price boost will spike short term profits, but raise buyback costs until things settle down again. IF they do. And acquisitions by others are going to get very expensive for a while if they don't.

I think Woods may soon be the best CEO in XOM's history since WWII. I already have him in the same class as Lee Raymond and M.J. Rathbone II.

So, no specific info on acquisitions. But the direction of what's coming seems clear. Shell & BP would not be a surprise.