#oilgasproducers

Oxy cuts when oil prices are down, when they are up, when results are bad, and even when they are good. Basically, it can happen at any time. It is best to always expect layoffs here.

Not looking good!

I guess I was wrong.

This is from 2007-2008 period when Calgary’s job market was hot. Lots of young engineers were quitting Imperial Oil. Imperial was desperate to retain its people. Salary bumps across the board were in double digits (and not the lower double digits).

I remember attending Engineering VP Eddy Lui’s town hall meeting for the engineers and geoscientists. Eddy was explaining how Imperial Oil had a d-mbbell shaped demography curve - lots of people in their very early careers, lots of people at the end of there career, and almost no-one in the mid-career in the company. The reason for this demography was Imperial’s decision to lay off and not hire anyone in the early and mid 90s. Eddy said, “Never again Imperial will make such a mistake!”. In his words, Imperial will hire engineers at a steady pace irrespective of the company’s situation. Eddy and upper management were worried about the future of the company. When the seniors retire, they would leave a vacuum in the company.

Let’s come to the present now. Some of the folks who attended that session are at the top of the company now. I am telling you, you folks will have to repeat Eddy’s comment when no one will come to Imperial Oil when the market recovers. You will be saying, “Never again Imperial will make such a mistake!”.

This is from 2007-2008 period when Calgary’s job market was hot. Lots of young engineers were quitting Imperial Oil. Imperial was desperate to retain its people. Salary bumps across the board were in double digits (and not the lower double digits).

I remember attending Engineering VP Eddy Lui’s town hall meeting for the engineers and geoscientists. Eddy was explaining how Imperial Oil had a d-mbbell shaped demography curve - lots of people in their very early careers, lots of people at the end of there career, and almost no-one in the mid-career in the company. The reason for this demography was Imperial’s decision to lay off and not hire anyone in the early and mid 90s. Eddy said, “Never again Imperial will make such a mistake!”. In his words, Imperial will hire engineers at a steady pace irrespective of the company’s situation. Eddy and upper management were worried about the future of the company. When the seniors retire, they would leave a vacuum in the company.

Let’s come to the present now. Some of the folks who attended that session are at the top of the company now. I am telling you, you folks will have to repeat Eddy’s comment when no one will come to Imperial Oil when the market recovers. You will be saying, “Never again Imperial will make such a mistake!”.

Doesn’t the sale make Oxy more attractive to a buyer like XOM or Chevron?

Apache has several headwinds ahead that could alter the company’s outlook and trajectory.
Abandonment liabilities increasing into the +4 billion dollar range as North Sea and Fieldwood combine to create a very significant financial drag.
Permian basin starting to show signs off deliverability well issues as wells enter the post flush phase…that long runway is looking less attractive.
Gran Morgu…aka Deepwater Alpine High…something is off here…like a purposeful delay and concern from project manager…that the promised 250,000 bopd peak may actually be closer to half advertised and with high decline rates

By Steve Gelsi

Domestic oil and gas production takes center stage in Exxon's latest capital project list

Exxon Mobil Corp. has announced plans to spend $140 billion in the Permian Basin region as part of a plan by the oil and gas giant to ramp up its earnings and return cash to shareholders with a focus on U.S. production.

The move comes after Exxon (XOM) topped upstream production expectations in the third quarter, after spending $60 billion to buy Pioneer Natural Resources, an acreage holder in the Permian Basin of West Texas.

Its cost savings for the Pioneer deal will total $3 billion, which is 50% more than its previous projections, the company said.

The oil major said its big spend in the Permian Basin will generate returns of more than 30% by 2030, which will drive cash returns to shareholders.

Exxon said it will buy back $20 billion in stock in 2026 after spending the same big sum in 2025 to repurchase its stock.

Exxon Mobil's stock was down 0.3% in premarket trading on Wednesday. The stock has risen 12.7% so far in 2024, while the S&P 500 SPX is up by 26.5%.

"The company's capital allocation approach prioritizes competitively advantaged, high-return, low-cost-of-supply investments," the company said.

It'll spend $27 billion to $29 billion on capital projects in 2025, which will be the first first full year of Pioneer in its portfolio.

Looking ahead, Exxon Mobil expects to earn an additional $20 billion and $30 billion in cash flow, with a compound annual earnings growth rate of 10%.

It's also targeting $7 billion in cost savings. Its cost savings for the Pioneer deal will total $3 billion, which is 50% more than its previous projections.

Some other major capital projects underway include:

-- A boost in production from Guyana by developing two additional projects called Longtail and Hammerhead. The oil major expects total production capacity of 1.7 million barrels per day by 2030 in Guyana.

-- Liquid natural gas (LNG) production investment including first LNG sales from the Golden Pass development in the U.S and from the Qatar North Field East expansion project in 2025. In 2026, it's planning to make final investment decisions at the Rovuma development in Mozambique and the Papua project in Papua New Guinea in 2026.

-- The world's first large-scale carbon capture and storage system for carbon dioxide for permanent subsurface storage capacity throughout the U.S. Gulf Coast.

-- ExxonMobil is targeting 2029 to start operations on what it bills as the world's largest low-carbon hydrogen facility in Baytown. It'll produce uip to 1 billion cubic feet of "virtually" carbon-free hydrogen per day with about 98% of the carbon dioxide captured and stored.

• Steve Gelsi

https://www.morningstar.com/news/marketwatch/20241211219/exxon-pouring-140-billion-into-the-permian-basin-after-rise-in-third-quarter-production