Suspended Exploratory Well Costs

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2014

Capitalized Exploratory Well Costs [Abstract]

Suspended Exploratory Well Costs

5. Suspended Exploratory Well Costs

The Company’s suspended exploratory well costs were $1.5 billion at September 30, 2014, and $2.2 billion at December 31, 2013. The decrease in suspended exploratory well costs during 2014 primarily resulted from the Company’s sale of a 10% working interest in Rovuma Offshore Area 1 in Mozambique during the first quarter of 2014. Projects with suspended exploratory well costs are those identified by management as exhibiting sufficient quantities of hydrocarbons to justify potential development and where management is actively pursuing efforts to assess whether reserves can be attributed to these projects. If additional information becomes available that raises substantial doubt as to the economic or operational viability of any of these projects, the associated costs will be expensed at that time. During the nine months ended September 30, 2014, no exploratory well costs previously capitalized as suspended exploratory well costs for greater than one year at December 31, 2013, were charged to dry hole expense.