You'll Be Surprised at the Size of ConocoPhillips' War Chest

One of the effects of the oil market downturn is that energy companies have been hoarding cash. Most cut back expenses to the bare bones and sold assets to shore up their balance sheets, which means several companies are holding massive amounts of cash on their balance sheets. ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) has one of the biggest cash piles among independent producers at a whopping $10.3 billion as of the end of last quarter. For perspective, that's more than double the war chest of big oil behemoth ExxonMobil, which ended last quarter with $4 billion in cash.

Here's a look at how the U.S. oil giant built up its war chest, and what it plans to do with all of that money.

Image source: Getty Images.

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Source: Fool.com