Occidental makes superior proposal to acquire Anadarko

Occidental Petroleum has delivered a letter to the Board of Directors of Anadarko Petroleum setting forth the terms of a superior proposal by Occidental to acquire Anadarko for US$76.00 per share, in which Anadarko shareholders would receive US$38.00 in cash and 0.6094 shares of Occidental common stock for each share of Anadarko common stock.

 

Occidental’s proposal represents a premium of approximately 20% to the value of Anadarko’s pending transaction as of the 23rd April 2019.

 

Occidental believes its proposal is superior both financially and strategically for Anadarko’s shareholders, creating a global energy leader with the scale and geographic diversification to drive growth and deliver compelling value and returns to the shareholders of both companies.

 

The combined company will be uniquely positioned to leverage Occidental’s demonstrated operational and technical expertise, producing greater anticipated synergies than Anadarko’s pending transaction. The 50-50 cash and stock transaction is valued at US$57 billion, based on Occidental’s closing price on the 23rd April 2019, including the assumption of net debt and book value of non-controlling interest.

 

“Occidental is a leader in using technological innovation to create value, and we will deploy our expertise to enhance the performance and productivity of Anadarko’s assets not only in the Permian, but globally,” said Vicki Hollub, President and Chief Executive Officer of Occidental.

 

“Occidental and Anadarko have a highly complementary asset portfolio, providing us with a unique opportunity to realize significant operating, cost, and capital allocation synergies and achieve near-term cash flow accretion.”

 

Vicki Hollub continued, “We have been focused on Anadarko for several years because we have long believed that we are ideally positioned to generate compelling value from a combination with them. We look forward to engaging immediately with Anadarko’s Board and stakeholders to deliver this superior transaction.”

 

Compelling Strategic & Financial Rationale

 

  • Applies Occidental’s proven technology and operational excellence to Anadarko portfolio: Anadarko’s asset portfolio is ideally positioned to benefit from Occidental’s operating model of deploying superior technology to drive performance and value with lower operating costs. In addition to generating greater returns in Anadarko’s Permian assets, this model can be applied to Anadarko’s assets worldwide, to accelerate cash flow growth across the asset base

 

  • Enhances Permian leadership position and bolsters portfolio with additional free cash flow generating assets: The proposed transaction enhances Occidental’s position as the largest producer in the Permian with 533 thousand Boe/d of production, accelerating its value-driven strategy in US onshore through a combination of leading assets and best-in-class economics. Adding to Occidental’s existing, cash flow generating international and chemicals portfolio, Anadarko’s industry-leading DJ Basin operations combined with its cash flow generating assets in the Gulf of Mexico, Algeria and Ghana, provide complementary growth and enhanced stability. The combined company’s asset base is expected to supply low-cost development opportunities to fuel high return growth for years to come

 

  • Creates a global energy leader with enhanced scale and expertise to lead energy into a low carbon future: The combination features a compelling mix of world-class growth assets that are expected to produce a stronger and more competitive business, with over 1.4 million Boe/d of current production. Additionally, this leverages Occidental’s existing initiatives to utilise its CO2 enhanced oil recovery expertise and infrastructure for economic and social benefit by applying its low carbon strategy to Anadarko’s asset base

 

  • Accretive year one, generating even stronger financial returns: The proposed transaction accelerates Occidental’s commitment to generating attractive total shareholder returns. It is expected to be significantly accretive to Occidental’s cash flow and free cash flow, on a per share basis after dividends in 2020 and beyond, with substantial growth over time, driven by complementary assets and synergies. In addition to supporting accelerated dividend growth, Occidental expects to be able to opportunistically buy back stock while retiring debt through portfolio optimisation and free cash flow

 

  • High impact synergies and capital spending efficiency: Occidental has identified US$3.5 billion in annual free cash flow improvements that are expected to be fully achieved by 2021, comprised of US$2 billion in annual pre-tax run-rate cost synergies, and US$1.5 billion of capital reduction, with the potential for further upside. The cost synergies are expected to be realised from capital and operating cost efficiencies, general administration and corporate savings, procurement and supply chain, and the application of best practices. The annual capital reduction will be delivered in the first year and result in moderating near-term production growth from 10% to 5% on a combined basis.

 

  • Secures dividend growth strategy and strong balance sheet: Occidental is firmly committed to maintaining its current dividend growth strategy. The combined company is expected to have an investment grade credit rating. The proposed transaction is not subject to any financing condition, and Occidental has in place committed financing for the cash portion of the acquisition price.

 

Source: Energy-pedia