Oil industry drying up

Wooden oil derricks once forested the Los Angeles landscape like stars along Hollywood Boulevard. But while a dwindling number of wells remain active, a once vital Los Angeles industry is running dry.

The acquisition this week of Unocal Corp. by San Ramon-based Chevron Corp. means Occidental Petroleum is the only major oil and gas company still headquartered here. Chevron, the nation’s second-largest oil company, approached Unocal and later upped its offer to approximately $18 billion after Chinese-owned CNOOC Ltd. entered the bidding.

Press Telegram