[curiosity]

There's no econmic reason for not continuing with the plan -- bidding the leases and allowing the lengthy exploration phase to begin.

At oil prices under $40/barrel, no oil company is going to do any exploring any time soon. There's an economic reason for that.

[thackney]

At oil prices under $40/barrel, no oil company is going to do any exploring any time soon.

Exploration is definitely decreasing, but its not going to completely stop.

[okie01]

At oil prices under $40/barrel, no oil company is going to do any exploring any time soon. There's an economic reason for that.

Exploring and mapping isn't cheap, but it's the least capital intensive of the process.

Oil companies don't stop looking for oil when it's cheap -- they simply stop developing their reserves.

Because they know that, in the long run, there's more "up" in the oil market than there is "down".