Hints and tips:
...Exxon’s market capitalisation was $436bn as of Thursday. Exxon and Pioneer declined to comment....
...This time, Exxon is hoping things will go differently....
...The potential writedowns come little more than a decade after Exxon bought US natural gas producer XTO Energy for $41bn, a deal in which Exxon is considered to have vastly overpaid....
...The writedowns could apply to its North American gas portfolio, it said, including assets it acquired in 2009 when it bought XTO Energy for $41bn — a deal in which Exxon is considered to have vastly overpaid...
...Belatedly, recognising the promise of the shale revolution happening under its nose, Exxon’s $41bn purchase of XTO including its debt in 2009 made it the US’ biggest natural gas producer....
...still operates under the XTO Energy name....
...Staale Gjervik, president of XTO Energy, Exxon’s shale division, told Kevin Crowley of Bloomberg that the company was aiming for all-in costs of only about $15 a barrel as it expands rapidly in the Permian...
...Sara Ortwein, president of Exxon’s shale oil and gas subsidiary XTO, said the initiative reflected its commitment to “improving the efficiency of our operations and reducing and mitigating greenhouse gas...
...equipment, which have been first deployed at XTO operations in Texas....
...But Sara Ortwein, president of XTO Energy, Exxon’s shale subsidiary, said cost reductions and the group’s ability to maximise the value of its resources by using its production in its own refineries and...
...XTO Energy, Exxon’s shale subsidiary, will replace equipment, train staff and research new technologies to curb leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas estimated to trap heat 28 to 36 times as effectively...
...It is also growing faster than other large oil groups: it expects output to rise by between 4 and 9 per cent this year, while Exxon’s production is roughly flat....
...The deal, which is worth $5.6bn in Exxon shares plus up to $1bn more in cash, is the company’s largest since the $41bn acquisition of XTO Energy, agreed in 2009....
...Gas prices have fallen sharply since then, and Exxon has been accused of overpaying for XTO....
...But Anish Kapadia of Tudor Pickering argues that the XTO deal “didn’t really work out”, because Exxon was too slow in transferring that know-how from gas and to more profitable oil production....
...But Exxon’s shares have also lagged behind Chevron, its US rival. Mr Tillerson’s critics point to strategic mis-steps including the 2009 acquisition of XTO Energy, a midsized US shale gas producer....
...Exxon came into the Permian through its takeover of XTO Energy in 2010, and added on subsequent smaller acquisitions, while Chevron has a large legacy position....
...Exxon moved more decisively to respond to that threat than any of its peers, agreeing in December 2009 to pay $41bn including debt for XTO Energy, a leading shale producer, but the fall in natural gas prices...
...Finally, Exxon’s executives will be alert to the risk of overpaying during a downturn, following the deal to buy XTO Energy, a US shale company, for $41bn including debt that they agreed at the end of 2009...
...Analysts and bankers say Exxon is also wary of overpaying for acquisitions, following criticism that it paid too much for XTO Energy, the US shale gas and oil company it bought for $41bn, including debt,...
...Exxon agreed to pay $41bn including debt for shale gas and oil producer XTO Energy in 2009, at a time when gas prices were roughly double what they are today, and Mr Tillerson will not want to make the same...
...Exxon gambled $41bn on US gas explorer XTO, just before gas prices went south. A low margin project in Iraq looks iffy....
...Exxon said that, by preserving much of XTO’s independence, it was trying to maintain the company’s dynamism....
...Exxon bought heavily into US natural gas with the $41bn acquisition of XTO Energy in 2010, and has been suffering from the subsequent weakness of US gas prices, but the cold weather has helped turn that...
...It picked up substantial gas assets when it bought XTO Energy, a shale producer, in 2010, but has been shifting drilling rigs to pursue oil instead, in the Bakken shale of North Dakota, the Woodford Ardmore...
International Edition