Here is an post which seems unrelated to PO but has a direct bearing on oil co investment:
Federal Reserve: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Is What Scares Us About Banks In Physical Commodities
The Federal Reserve took a potential step Tuesday to limit big banks’ activities in physical commodities, publicly outlining concerns with bank investments in ventures that can lead to deadly oil spills, pipeline ruptures and natural gas explosions.
The expected move comes after months of criticism by U.S. lawmakers that large banks’ recent expansion into businesses such as oil fields and tankers, metals warehouses, and chemical pipelines poses risks to the U.S. economy and financial system. Industrial companies, such as MillerCoors, and lawmakers, including Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), also have raised concerns about possible manipulation of key commodities markets, which may boost banks' profit while leading to higher costs for households and manufacturers.
In its request for public comment, the Fed appeared skeptical of the benefits of banks' involvement in physical commodities. The Fed pointed out several environmental disasters that resulted from physical commodities activities, such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the 2010 explosion of a power plant in Middletown, Conn., that killed six people. BP alone had recognized $42.2 billion in losses as of last year as a result of the oil spill, the Fed said. Having banks involved in physical commodities puts them at risk of similar catastrophes, the Fed suggested, which could lead to a big bank’s failure.
Read the whole post at HP