Good attendance for oil talks in Venice

Oct. 1, 1998 Saudi Aramco will join 14 other oil companies plus OPEC Secretary General Rilwanu Lukman at an industry conference in Venice, organisers said.
Apart from Saudi Aramco, the line-up includes Chevron and National Iranian Oil Company, said a spokeswoman for the organisers.
Major invitees who will not attend include Exxon, Mobil, Texaco, Amoco, Shell, British Petroleum and Russian natural gas giant Gazprom.
Company chief executives were expected to discuss industry restructuring, changing technology, petroleum geopolitics and environmental and social issues.
Organisers have been at pains to play down fears that the gathering will turn into a crisis summit that could lead to anti-consumer cartels and price-gouging.
Accordingly there is to be no discussion of pricing arrangements, PFC has said. It has invited a US energy lawyer Lynn Coleman to attend in what experts said was a move to protect the gathering from accusations of market manipulation.
But the companies were expected to review their attempts to cut costs and integrate to try to prepare for what could be years of low prices battered by global economic malaise.
The executives are also expected to discuss how best to attack overcapacity and slack demand while retaining the muscle to compete for reserves in emerging areas.
The attendees are: Anadarko; Chevron; Elf Acquitaine; ENI; Halliburton; National Iranian Oil Company; Lasmo; OPEC; PetroCanada; Repsol; SASOL; Saudi Aramco; Sonangol Sonatrach; Statoil.