Prior to its expansion in the Permian with the purchase of Pioneer, ExxonMobil placed a smaller bet on carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) during 3Q23 with its acquisition of Denbury for $4.9 billion. While Denbury did bring to the table legacy oil production, the core driver of the acquisition is likely the infrastructure the company has in place, specifically CO2 pipelines that support ExxonMobil's plan to build a carbon sequestration hub along the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast.