ExxonMobil Enters Exploration MoU With Turkey's National Oil Company

Exxon Mobil Corporation XOM, a leading integrated energy giant, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Turkey’s national oil company (NOC) for exploration. Turkey's energy minister stated that this deal will enable XOM to evaluate and identify oil and natural gas resources in previously untapped areas of the Black Sea and Mediterranean.

According to the Turkish energy minister, adding ExxonMobil’s expertise with Turkey’s NOC is expected to enhance operational efficiency and increase the chances of finding new oil and gas fields.

Following production from the Sakarya field in 2023, Turkey has stepped up offshore assessment in the untapped areas of the Black Sea. By 2025, the Sakarya field reached a daily production of around 9.5 million cubic meters of gas. Recently, Turkey announced another gas discovery near Sakarya, adding 75 billion cubic meters, a significant new volume of gas from the Goktepe-3 well. With this discovery, the total amount of natural gas discovered in the Black Sea has increased significantly to 785 billion cubic meters.

XOM generates the majority of its earnings from its upstream business, which is exposed to crude price volatility. With the West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices hovering below $60 per barrel, the upstream business remains under pressure.

XOM currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Other key players in the integrated oil and gas space whose business models are also vulnerable to crude price volatility are Chevron Corporation CVX, BP p.l.c. BP and Eni S.p.A. E, each carrying a Zacks Rank #3. 

Chevron, headquartered in Houston, TX, is an integrated energy giant that achieved first oil production from its South N’dola platform in Angola in December.

BP, like CVX, also started early production at the Atlantis Drill Center 1 expansion in the U.S. Gulf of America. BP boosted daily production by about 15,000 barrels of oil equivalent following the launch of its seventh major project in 2025.

Eni, headquartered in Rome, Italy, has a global footprint. Eni engages across the entire energy chain, from hydrocarbons to next-generation energy technologies.

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