Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY) today announced the initial actions resulting from the Company’s strategic review to streamline and focus operations in order to better execute the Company’s long-term strategy and enhance value for shareholders.
The Board of Directors has authorized the following:
- Pursue the sale of a minority interest in the Middle East/North Africa operations in a financially efficient manner. ()
- Pursue strategic alternatives for select Midcontinent assets, including oil and gas interests in the Williston Basin, Hugoton Field, Piceance Basin and other Rocky Mountain assets. ()
- Sale of a portion of the Company’s 35-percent investment in the General Partner of Plains All-American Pipeline, L.P., resulting in pre-tax proceeds of $1.3 billion. Occidental’s remaining interest in Plains All-American Pipeline, based on the IPO price, is worth approximately $3.4 billion.
“These are the first formal steps in our effort to streamline the business, concentrate in areas where we have depth and scale and improve overall profitability. Our goal is to become a somewhat smaller company with more manageable exposure to political risk,” said Stephen I. Chazen, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We will continue to consider additional strategic alternatives for the Company to maximize total returns to our shareholders.”
These actions will generate a significant amount of proceeds. Together with the excess cash on the Company’s balance sheet, these funds will largely be used to reduce Occidental’s capitalization. The Company expects to complete the strategic review in the coming months and will disclose material developments as they occur.
About Oxy
is an international oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, Middle East/North Africa and Latin America regions. Oxy is one of the largest U.S. oil and gas companies, based on equity market capitalization. Oxy's wholly owned subsidiary, OxyChem, manufactures and markets chlor-alkali products and vinyls. Oxy is committed to safeguarding the environment, protecting the safety and health of employees and neighboring communities and upholding high standards of social responsibility in all of the company's worldwide operations.
Forward-Looking Statements
Portions of this press release contain forward-looking statements and involve risks and uncertainties that could materially affect expected results of operations, liquidity, cash flows and business prospects. Factors that could cause results to differ materially include, but are not limited to: not successfully completing, or any material delay of, dispositions, field developments, capital expenditures; general economic slowdowns domestically or internationally; global commodity pricing fluctuations; supply and demand considerations for Occidental's specific products; higher-than-expected costs; political conditions and events; lower-than-expected production from development projects; exploration risks; litigation; disruption or interruption of production; or changes in law or regulations. Words such as “estimate,” “project,” “predict,” “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “may,” “might,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “intend,” “believe,” “expect,” “aim,” “goal,” “target,” “objective,” “likely” or similar expressions that convey the prospective nature of events or outcomes generally indicate forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Unless legally required, Occidental does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Material risks that may affect Occidental's results of operations and financial position appear in Part I, Item 1A “Risk Factors” of the 2012 Form 10-K. Occidental posts or provides links to important information on its website at 
Contact
Interested parties may contact:
Todd Stevens
Vice President, Corporate Development
todd_stevens@oxy.com
310-443-6141
or
Media Inquiries:
Melissa E. Schoeb
melissa_schoeb@oxy.com
310-443-6504
or
Investor Inquiries:
Chris Stavros
chris_stavros@oxy.com
212-603-8184
On the web:
