经济学人138:俄罗斯石油 奋起的埃克森石油

 　　Business Oil in Russia Exxonerated

　　商业 俄罗斯石油 奋起的埃克森石油

　　Where BP failed, Exxon succeeds

　　英国石油失落，埃克森石油奋起

　　FOR BP it could hardly have been worse. On August 30th Exxon Mobil struck a deal with Rosneft to explore the same icy blocks of the Arctic Kara Sea that slipped from BP's grasp when its vaunted tie-up with the Russian state-controlled oil firm collapsed¹ in the spring. Then things did get worse: the next day, one of BP's Moscow offices was raided by bailiffs.

　　8月30号，埃克森美孚与俄罗斯国家石油公司签署了一项协议，共同开发北冰洋边海喀拉海的冰层，该冰层曾在今年春天由于BP与俄罗斯国有石油公司夸大的铁关系破裂，而从英国石油公司（BP）手中溜走。对BP来说，几乎没有比这更坏的消息了。而事态却偏偏变得更加严重：第二天，BP的一个莫斯科办事处遭到了一群法警的搜查。

　　The deal is a triumph for Exxon, giving it access to one of oil's richest frontiers, with none of the nasty add-ons that tripped up BP. The British firm's proposed link with Rosneft would have meant giving the Russian firm 5% of its shares, an arrangement that BP's existing Russian partner, AAR, objected to. AAR took legal action and successfully blocked the deal.

　　该协议对于埃克森来说是一个大胜，使其能够进入最富有的石油开采前线，而不带任何曾经绊倒BP的恶心的附加条款。英国公司原先预想与俄罗斯国家石油公司的联盟将意味着转让其5%的股份予该俄罗斯公司，这一安排受到了BP当时的俄罗斯合作伙伴，AAR的反对，后者采取了法律行动，成功阻止了这次交易。

　　Exxon, in contrast, is neither swapping² shares nor violating any previous agreement. It has pledged to spend $2.2 billion exploring the potentially oil-rich Kara and $1 billion prospecting³ in the Black Sea. In return, it will allow Rosneft to take minority stakes in its deep-water projects in the Gulf⁴ of Mexico and onshore in Texas.

　　相反，埃克森则没有交换任何股份或违法任何先前的协议。其承诺将投资22亿美元来开采储量丰富的喀拉海，并还将在黑海进行10亿美元的投资。作为回报，埃克森将允许俄罗斯石油工业集团拥有其在墨西哥湾和德克萨斯沿岸深水项目的一小部分利益。

　　If all goes well, Exxon's total investment in Russian Arctic oil could run into hundreds of billions of dollars over a decade—a figure Russia's prime minister, Vladimir Putin, at a ceremony to launch the deal, described as "scary to utter". Whether such terrifying sums materialise will depend partly on the financial terms of Arctic exploration and the Kremlin's flexibility⁵ over the tax status of the project. These are yet to be decided⁶.

　　如果一切进展顺利的话，埃克森对俄国北冰洋石油开采的投资将在未来十年内达到数千亿美元-这一数字被俄国首相普京在该协议签订仪式上描述成了"不敢说出口的"。这一巨额投资能否最终实现将部分取决于北冰洋开采项目的财政情况和克里姆林宫对该项目税收地位的灵活度。这一切都是未知数。

　　Yet Exxon's plans already look more promising⁷ than BP's did. When announcing that proposal, Bob Dudley, BP's boss, trumpeted⁸ his knowledge of Russian politics. In fact it was BP's misjudgment of Russian politics and corporate⁹ culture that did for the deal. Mr Dudley wrongly believed that getting into bed with a powerful Kremlin firm would cow his existing oligarch partners. Having now alienated¹⁰ both, BP appears to have little protection against being pushed around in Russia—as the raid on its offices may suggest.

　　然而埃克森的计划已经看起来比BP的更加令人期待。当BP的老板Bob Dudley宣布他的提议时，他在吹嘘自己对俄国政治的理解。实际上正是BP对俄国政治和企业文化的误判导致了这次协议的失败。Dudley先生错误的认为与一个强大的俄国国有公司联盟能够给其现有的寡头伙伴一点厉害。而现在与两家的间隙难以保证BP在俄国不会被人左右-正如其受到的办公室搜查所暗示的那样。

　　To Exxon's great advantage, its deal is more important to Russia, which desperately¹¹ needs foreign investment and expertise¹² in its oil industry, than it is for Exxon, the world's biggest private oil firm. Rosneft's share price jumped 8% after the announcement. (It also jumped 8% the previous day in the local market, suggesting insider dealing¹³.) Exxon's shareholders¹⁵ were less giddy, perhaps reflecting on the pitfalls¹⁶ of doing business in Russia.

　　相比埃克森这个世界最大的私人石油公司，这一协议对俄国这方更为重要，因为其石油行业正急需外国投资和技术，这使得埃克森有了巨大的优势。在协议宣布之后，俄罗斯国家石油公司的股价涨了8%（在此前一天，当地市场的股价就已经涨了8%，说明有内部交易存在。）埃克森的股东则没那么兴奋，也许是因为在俄国做生意的诸多陷阱。

　　They have experienced them. In 2003 Exxon considered buying a large stake in Yukos, then Russia's largest oil firm. Yet shortly after Lee Raymond, Exxon's chief executive, flew to Moscow to negotiate the deal with Mr Putin, Yukos's main shareholder¹⁴, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, was arrested, Yukos was dismantled¹⁷ and its assets were swallowed by Rosneft.

　　他们其实已经吃过一亏了。2003年，埃克森曾考虑大量购买俄罗斯当时最大的石油公司-尤科斯-的股份。然而就在埃克森的首席执行官Lee Raymond飞到莫斯科与普京讨论这一协议之后没多久，尤科斯的最大股东，Mikhail Khodorkovsky就被逮捕了，尤科斯随后被解散，资产全被俄罗斯石油工业集团吞并。

　　That outrage¹⁸ could yet cast a shadow over the Exxon deal in America, where politicians continue to condemn¹⁹ the Kremlin over it. Indeed, this may be one reason why Igor Sechin, Mr Putin's right-hand man, who oversaw²⁰ the destruction of Yukos and the Exxon deal, has kept away from America. But American oil firms are a different matter: as Exxon has shown, so long as you sit on colossal²¹ oil reserves, they will always be happy to do business.

　　美国公众对这一恼人事件留下的阴影仍然影响着埃克森的此次协议。的确，这也许就是为什么普京先生的得力助手，管理尤科斯的解散和埃克森此次协议的Igor Sechin对美国一直保持距离的原因之一。但美国的石油公司则是另外一码事了：正如埃克森所表现的，只要你坐拥庞大的石油资源，他们就会一直乐意同你做生意。

1 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

2 swapping   

交换，交换技术

参考例句：

• The slow swapping and buying of horses went on. 马匹的买卖和交换就是这样慢慢地进行着。
• He was quite keen on swapping books with friends. 他非常热衷于和朋友们交换书籍。

3 prospecting   

n.探矿

参考例句：

• The prospecting team ploughed their way through the snow. 探险队排雪前进。
• The prospecting team has traversed the length and breadth of the land. 勘探队踏遍了祖国的山山水水。

4 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

5 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

8 trumpeted   

大声说出或宣告（trumpet的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Soldiers trumpeted and bugled. 士兵们吹喇叭鸣号角。
• The radio trumpeted the presidential campaign across the country. 电台在全国范围大力宣传总统竞选运动。

9 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

10 alienated   

adj.感到孤独的，不合群的v.使疏远( alienate的过去式和过去分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等）

参考例句：

• His comments have alienated a lot of young voters. 他的言论使许多年轻选民离他而去。
• The Prime Minister's policy alienated many of her followers. 首相的政策使很多拥护她的人疏远了她。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

12 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

13 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

14 shareholder   

n.股东，股票持有人

参考例句：

• The account department have prepare a financial statement for the shareholder.财务部为股东准备了一份财务报表。
• A shareholder may transfer his shares in accordance with the law.股东持有的股份可以依法转让。

15 shareholders   

n.股东( shareholder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The meeting was attended by 90% of shareholders. 90%的股东出席了会议。
• the company's fiduciary duty to its shareholders 公司对股东负有的受托责任

16 pitfalls   

（捕猎野兽用的）陷阱( pitfall的名词复数 )； 意想不到的困难，易犯的错误

参考例句：

• the potential pitfalls of buying a house 购买房屋可能遇到的圈套
• Several pitfalls remain in the way of an agreement. 在达成协议的进程中还有几个隐藏的困难。

17 dismantled   

拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消

参考例句：

• The plant was dismantled of all its equipment and furniture. 这家工厂的设备和家具全被拆除了。
• The Japanese empire was quickly dismantled. 日本帝国很快被打垮了。

18 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

19 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

20 oversaw   

v.监督，监视( oversee的过去式 )

参考例句：

• He will go down as the president who oversaw two historic transitions. 他将作为见证了巴西两次历史性转变的总统，安然引退。 来自互联网
• Dixon oversaw the project as creative director of Design Research Studio. 狄克逊监督项目的创意总监设计研究工作室。 来自互联网

21 colossal   

adj.异常的，庞大的

参考例句：

• There has been a colossal waste of public money.一直存在巨大的公款浪费。
• Some of the tall buildings in that city are colossal.那座城市里的一些高层建筑很庞大。