More giant oil industry mergers could be on the way, according to reports that French oil company TotalFinaElf is planning to take over its US rival Conoco.

The French company sees a planned merger between Conoco and Philips Petroleum as a threat, the Sunday Telegraph says.

The Conoco-Philips deal would create a $35bn company which would rank as number three in the US in terms of production after Exxon Mobil and ChevronTexaco.

If it could spoil the party and buy Conoco, the move would catapult it into the oil industry big league.

The French company refused to comment on the reports.

TotalFinaElf, as its name suggests, is already the product of mass consolidation, after Total bought Petrofina of Belgium in 1999 and then merged with Elf, France's scandal-hit former state-owned oil player.

The names get longer

As many of the above names suggest, the energy industry is in the midst of a wave of consolidation, triggered by the rock-bottom oil prices seen in the late 90s.

The UK's BP, for instance, remains BP - but only after shedding three other names of recently-acquired or merged-with companies, including Amoco.

Italy's partly state-owned Eni is looking further afield, including - it is thought - a failed bid for UK independent Enterprise Oil last week.

In TotalFinaElf's case, its Elf constituent had already proposed a joining with Conoco before it was subsumed into the larger entity.

If the current Conoco deal goes through, Philips shareholders and executives will end up controlling the new company.

Some analysts have suggested that Conoco, which after all is a major player in 40 countries in its own right, could have got a better deal.

But the current agreement between Conoco and Philips does include a $550m walkaway penalty, which could pose problems.