CM - Exxon surprises markets with new euro-denominated bond sale - June 2020Exxon Mobil Corp. dared to go where it hasn’t gone before—into eurobonds. It issued €4.5 billion ($5.24 billion) of notes in four separate tranches on June 23. The eurobonds are a departure from Exxon’s usual corporate debt raising—the first eurobonds among the $46.6 billion in notes currently outstanding on the AA rated issuer’s balance sheet. Including these notes, the US’ largest oil and gas company has floated over $23 billion worth of debt YTD. A 23-bank syndicate sold €1.5 billion...
Jun 26, 2020
IS - Aramco closes $69B acquisition of chemicals giant SABIC - June 2020Wrapping up one of the largest-ever deals in the chemicals sector, Saudi Aramco announced on June 17 the completion of its $69.1 billion acquisition of a 70% stake in petrochemicals company Saudi Basic Industries Corp. from the Saudi Public Investment Fund. The transaction merges the country’s two largest companies and gives Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s plans to diversify the country a significant boost. To provide a shield against low oil prices, Aramco will pay for its stake via...
Jun 22, 2020
CM - Oxy needs to tackle $40B debt pile, looking at various ways - May 2020Occidental Petroleum Corp. hired Moelis & Co. to help it decide how to handle its $40 billion debt load. Possible alternatives include buying back some of its nearly $35 billion in bonds at a discount through exchange offers, and CFO Robert Peterson told analysts the company may raise new cash and swap debt for stock. Oxy was counting on being able to sell $15 billion of assets to help repay investors, but eroding market conditions threw the company a curve ball and the value of its...
May 15, 2020
CM - People & Companies - April 3, 2020Amazing Energy Oil and Gas Co. named Benjamin Jacobson III CFO effective Feb. 13, succeeding Marty Dobbins, who resigned. Prior to joining Amazing Energy, Jacobson co-founded ICP, LLC, which invests in E&P companies. Apache Corp. appointed Clay Bretches EVP, Operations, a promotion from SVP Operations. He will also continue to serve as CEO and a director of Apache subsidiary Altus Midstream Co., which he has done for over a year. Basic Energy Services, Inc. has reconfigured its...
Apr 03, 2020
IS - Petronas and Exxon mull sale of Chad-Cameroon oil project - March 2020Petronas and ExxonMobil are working with advisers on a proposed sale of their stakes in the Chad-Cameroon Petroleum Development and Pipeline project that could fetch a total of more than $1 billion, Japanese wealth management firm Osaka Matsui Management said in a March 10 statement. The joint project consists of oil fields in southern Chad’s Doba Basin and a major pipeline transporting crude to a marine terminal for exportation in Cameroon. Exxon has retained Standard Chartered to sell...
Mar 24, 2020
A&D - Analyst Notes - March 19, 2020Continental Resources (CLR; $17.46-Feb. 27; Buy; PT-$30) CLR’s 2020 plan came out flat given low forecasted growth w/moderate FCF at current levels after a solid 4Q19/2019. We believe given the operational acumen, solid assets & numerous monetization opportunities, CLR’s initial 2020 guidance could be considered conservative as with initial 2019 guidance. Further, a 2020 transition should set up for a notable 2021. We see near-term catalysts including upside from Springboard 2 &...
Mar 19, 2020
PS - People & Companies - March 9, 2020Centennial Resource Development chairman and CEO Mark Papa will retire May 31. He will be replaced by VP and COO Sean R. Smith as CEO, and director Steven J. Shapiro will become nonexecutive chairman. Smith will also be appointed to the board; he formerly was VP of geoscience at the privately held Centennial. Shapiro has more than 40 years of financial and operation experience, most recently as CFO at Burlington Resources. Hunt Oil promoted Travis Armayor to CFO. He joined the company...
Mar 09, 2020
CS - Shareholders support Africa Energy’s US$25MM placement - February 2020Africa Energy Corp. placed more than 104 million common shares at US$0.238886 each to gross US$25 million ($33 million) in an offering that closed Feb. 5. The TSX Venture-listed company said that minimum subscription and allocation it accepted from any investor was US$110,205. Existing investors included Africa Oil Corp., the Lundin family and Ashley Heppenstall, which all bought amounts corresponding to their joint pro-rata share of the transaction. Africa Oil owned over 37.5% of the company,...
Feb 19, 2020
IS - Prime stake pays off for Africa Oil with $62.5MM dividend - February 2020Flush with $62.5 million in fresh cash from its first dividend from 50:50 JV Prime Oil & Gas BV, Africa Oil Corp. said it will pay off some of its $250 million in debt incurred to help buy the JV stake. Prime, which was formerly known as Petrobras Oil & Gas BV and holds stakes in deepwater Nigerian fields, distributed a $125 million total dividend payment to its two owners, Africa Oil and Brazilian bank BGT Pactual. Africa Oil CEO Keith Hill said the dividend came less than a...
Feb 11, 2020
IS - Africa Energy raises $25MM to drill three exploration wells - February 2020Africa Energy Corp. placed more than 104 million common shares at $0.238886 each to gross $25 million in an offering that closed Feb. 5. The TSX Venture Exchange-listed company, which operates in South Africa and Namibia, said the minimum subscription and allocation it accepted from any investor was $110,205. Existing investors included Africa Oil Corp., the Lundin family and Ashley Heppenstall, all of whom bought amounts corresponding to their joint pro rata share of the transaction....
Feb 11, 2020
OFS - A&D Briefs - June 10, 2020National Energy Services Reunited Corp. assumed control on June 1 of Sahara Petroleum Services Co., the largest indigenous services company in Egypt with operations across the Middle East and North Africa. The cash-andstock transaction, valued at $57 million when announced in February, introduces Houston-based NESR to Egyptian oil and gas and adds to its portfolio industrial and chemical services, which service the midstream and downstream sectors. Sahara also has upstream contracts in Saudi...
Jun 10, 2020
CS- US & International Briefs - April 1, 2020TSX-Venture listed CruzSur Energy Corp. will raise $300,000 through a non-brokered private placement of 2 million units at $0.15 each. Each unit consists of one common share and a twoyear common share purchase warrant exercisable at $0.18. The company, which focuses on proven oil and gas plays in Latin America, will use proceeds to settle liabilities and for general working capital. Marksmen Energy Inc. completed a non-brokered private placement of over 3.88 million units at $0.05 each...
Apr 01, 2020
IS - Asia Briefs - March 24, 2020State-owned Pakistan Oilfields Ltd. made a discovery with its Pindori-10 well in the Rawalpindi district of Pakistan’s Punjab province. The well flowed at an average of 1,292 boe/d (64% oil, 36% gas) and 330 bbl/d of water during a drill stem test from the Lockhart formation. Its peak rate on a 20/64-inch choke was 1,600 boe/d (69% oil, 31% gas). Pindori-10 was drilled to a total depth of 13,701 ft. Mubadala Petroleum is boosting its operated stake in the G1/48 concession in the Gulf of...
Mar 24, 2020
CS - News Briefs - March 10, 2020Advantagewon Oil Corp. said it has completed work on its second Canadian well and encountered oil again. The former producing well had a historic production rate of 20-30 bo/d. The company is in the process of tying in the well and expects to report flow rates in mid-March. In February, Advantagewon sold all of its Texas assets to focus solely on Canada. The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada is seeking public comments until April 4 on Australian natural resources conglomerate...
Mar 11, 2020
A&D - News Briefs - February 27, 2020Permian pure-play Diamondback Energy announced Feb. 18 that it acquired operated Midland Basin and Delaware Basin acreage in Texas in Q4 as part of an asset swap with an undisclosed company. In exchange, Diamondback sold operated Delaware acreage in Lea County, New Mexico. The company holds a total of 350,000 net acres in the Midland and Delaware, with 12,300 gross horizontal locations. Q4 oil production was 195,000 bo/d, up 5% sequentially. The company’s oil production guidance is...
Feb 27, 2020