Every crisis has its consolidation. At least, that used to be the case before the 2020 oil industry crisis. When earlier this summer Chevron said it would acquire Noble Energy, some may have breathed a sigh of relief that the consolidation was finally beginning. But is it? “Historically, the oil industry has approached crises with a sense that the given challenges would soon pass, capital would return to the sector, demand would recover, and prices would rebound, often supported by regulatory accommodations,” says Nicholas Renter, vice-president of sales at M&A SaaS services provider Datasite (former Merrill Corporation). With the attitude that a crisis is as much a problem as an opportunity, these companies, Renter says, have used crises to take bold, yet calculated moves. What we are having this year, however, is not your daddy’s oil price crash. The perfect storm of low oil prices and low oil demand […]