Does Anti-trust enter into any of this? Notice how mergers have cut the number of oil companies in half? At least among the big players. Chevron and Texico are now one. Exxon-Mobil. Connoco-Phillips. ARCO, but that's been a real long time. Probably others. It's looking more like an oligopoly, the next best thing to a monopoly, if you can get it. Big oil companies can; potato farmers can't.

Seems like big oil is just positioning itself for that peak oil myth that has been discussed here. If the supply of crude oil isn't going to grow, why build more refineries? Might as well merge and merge and control ever more of the remaining supply and squeeze the maximum profit out of it.

A lot of us are gonna' be taking sailing lessons in the future, I expect.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.