More Companies May Dig Deeper in Search for Oil

The successful production of oil from the five-mile-deep Jack well in the Gulf of Mexico is likely to spur more deep-water exploration around the world — and that prospect is helping calm overheated crude-oil markets anxious about future supplies.



In addition to companies involved in the Jack well, deep-water oil is poised to play a larger role in the portfolios of Exxon Mobil Corp., BP PLC, Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Brazil’s Petroleo Brasileiro SA. In the Gulf of Mexico, midsize companies such as Devon and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. are participating.

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