Of all the problems to face in the oil and gas business, this is the one you want.

Chevron has $21.5 billion in cash burning a hole in its pocket. The supermajor’s total debt load is just $10.2 billion. No other oil giant even comes close to this gearing. And why would they? As Deutsche Bank’s Big Oil analyst Paul Sankey says “We think it makes no sense whatsoever to be cash positive in this interest rate environment.”

It’s not as if Chief Executive John Watson doesn’t know where to spend Chevron’s cash — the company’s annual capital budget is more than $30 billion and it is currently building the Gorgon LNG in Australia, its biggest ever project, with an estimated pricetag of $50 billion.

But as cash goes out, more keeps flowing in. Net income is expected to clock in at $25 billion this year. So, the word on the street is that Chevron is looking to go on a shopping spree.

What to buy? Well, what does Chevron need? They already have an excellent portfolio of international growth projects that Sankey calls “the best long term asset base in global oil,” with operations in Azerbaijan, Kuwait, Australia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Angola, Thailand, Bangladesh, Congo and many more. The company’s not on great terms with Brazil after its spill-ette in the Frade field nearly a year ago. Russia is probably out of the question, after Chevron backed away from a JV with Rosneft a year ago.

So let’s assume that Watson and crew are looking to do their shopping in the U.S. The selection here is much broader than it was a few years ago. The smorgasbord of shale and other unconventional plays like the Bakken, Utica, Marcellus, Eagle Ford, Barnett, Fayetteville, Monterey, Mississippi Lime and many more is almost too much to take in.