Mr Mulva noted that ConocoPhillips’s 2007 total shareholder return of 25.4% was above the peer group average, and that the company’s three, five and 10-year returns led the peer group.
He reaffirmed ConocoPhillips’s intent to fund a capital program of $15.3 billion in 2008, to continue select asset sales that facilitate ongoing renewal of its portfolio, and to continue pursuing efficiency in executing its development projects, drilling programs and base operations.
In the exploration and production segment, the company outlined its strategic plans to advance an asset portfolio that is resource-rich, with more than 50 billion barrels of oil equivalent of existing resources, including 10.6 billion barrels of proved reserves at year-end 2007.
The company expects to spend approximately $400 million on technology in 2008, primarily to progress such technologies as reservoir imaging, steam-assisted gravity drainage, coal gasification, carbon capture and sequestration, cellulosic ethanol conversion, and refining processes.
Mr Mulva said: We have a strong portfolio of opportunities, and development plans are under way so that we can fully capitalize on their potential. Although we face intense competition for access to new resources and the prospect of legislation on climate change, we have taken steps to enable ConocoPhillips to operate effectively and deliver value as we manage the challenges ahead.
