LSMFT wrote in :

From 1980 until 2008 the declared reserves of Opec producers has
doubled. At the same time oil exploration has declined and new
discoveries are just about zero. Work that math.



New technologies allow recovery of oil that was unobtainable -- and
undetectable -- with older methods. Technology has been in full-gallop
since about 1860, with, thankfully, no end in sight.

Plus, deepwater is the new frontier; new discoveries there are abundant
(where politics allow...).
They can now go as deep as 40,000 ft, eight-times as deep as BP's ill-fated
well.

--
Tegger