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Robert M. Shearer Elected to Occidental Board of Directors

By News & Media

Robert M. Shearer Preng Placement Oxy Board(July 10, 2019) Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) announced today that Robert “Bob” M. Shearer, a former managing director of BlackRock Advisors LLC, has been elected to its Board of Directors. Preng & Associates assisted Occidental in its search.

Mr. Shearer, 64, has over 35 years of experience in securities and leading investment management firms. Before retiring from BlackRock in 2017, he was co-head of BlackRock’s Equity Dividend team and a member of the Fundamental Equity Platform within BlackRock’s Portfolio Management Group. Mr. Shearer was also the portfolio manager for both the BlackRock Equity Dividend Fund and Natural Resources Trust, which grew from $500 million to over $50 billion under his leadership. Previously, he managed the Merrill Lynch World Natural Resources Portfolio for Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, which merged with BlackRock in 2006. Mr. Shearer has also held senior leadership roles at David L. Babson & Company, Concert Capital Management and Fiduciary Trust Company International. As a senior research officer for Citicorp Investment Management, he focused on the oil industry, including exploration and production, pipelines and oil field services.

“With more than three decades of experience, Bob has a track record of creating significant value for investors with a focus on high-quality, dividend-growth stocks,” said Gene L. Batchelder, Chairman of the Board. “We are committed to growing our dividend as part our long-term strategy, and Bob’s industry knowledge and management expertise will be a great addition to our Board.”

“Occidental’s reputation for innovation and operational excellence and its strategy for sustainability set it apart in the industry,” Mr. Shearer said. “I am confident in Occidental’s ability to deliver on its long-term business strategy of industry-leading returns and returning capital to shareholders, and I look forward to supporting this commitment as a member of the Board of Directors.”

Mr. Shearer holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin, as well as a Master of International Management from the Thunderbird School of Global Management and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

About Occidental

Occidental is an international oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, Middle East and Latin America. Headquartered in Houston, Occidental is one of the largest U.S. oil and gas companies, based on equity market capitalization. Occidental’s midstream and marketing segment purchases, markets, gathers, processes, transports and stores hydrocarbons and other commodities. The company’s wholly owned subsidiary OxyChem manufactures and markets basic chemicals and vinyls. Occidental posts or provides links to important information on its website at oxy.com.

Contacts:

Media:
Melissa E. Schoeb
713-366-5615
melissa_schoeb@oxy.com

or

Investors:
Jeff Alvarez
713-215-7864
jeff_alvarez@oxy.com

Delek US Holdings Appoints Vicky Sutil to Board

By News & Media

Vicky Sutil Delek Board Preng Placement(Feb. 25, 2019) Delek US Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: DK) today announced the appointment of Vicky Sutil to the Board of Directors effective February 19, 2019. Preng & Associates assisted in the search.

“We are pleased to welcome Vicky to our board. Her experience in the refining and midstream industries, with a background that includes marketing, operations, financial management and business development, will provide us with invaluable insights and further enhance our growth strategy,” said Uzi Yemin, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Delek US Holdings.

Ms. Sutil has over 30 years of experience in the petroleum and refining industry. She is currently working with SK E&P Company focusing on strategic planning. She worked with California Resources as vice president of commercial analysis for CRC Marketing, Inc. from 2014 to 2016. From 2000 to 2014 she worked with Occidental Petroleum Corporation in different capacities including roles in corporate development and financial planning. Ms. Sutil also served as Occidental’s representative on the Board of Plains All American Pipeline from 2010 to 2015 and on the Board of Plains GP Holdings, L.P. from 2013 to 2015. She began her career with Mobil Oil Corporation and also worked with Arco Products Company

Steve Raben joins Preng & Associates as Senior Consultant

By News & Media

Steve Raben Preng ConsultantPreng & Associates, the world’s leading executive search firm totally dedicated to the energy industry, today announced Steve Raben joined the firm as a Senior Consultant. He will be based in the Houston office.

Mr. Raben has led over 500 domestic and international client assignments for public and private Oil & Gas, Petroleum Equipment, Service and Hydrocarbon Processing & Transportation companies, at the Board, C-Suite and business segment leadership levels. 

He joins Preng & Associates after a 30-year career in the search industry where he held leadership positions at three well-known executive search firms. Most recently, he founded and managed his own consultancy.

David Preng, President of Preng & Associates, said: “For 35 years, our practice has been built on the premise that the search process is most effective when conducted by professionals with significant industry experience. Steve’s extensive knowledge and expertise in the global energy industry is a tremendous asset to our firm and our clients. We’re excited to welcome him to the team.”

Raben said: “Preng & Associates client service, from London and Houston offices, includes conducting over 3,500 assignments with the majority completed in 90 days or less. Our consultants have previous employment with energy companies, such as:  Ladd Petroleum, BHP, Shell, KBR, McDermott, Hamilton Bros., and a successful private equity E&P company. They excel in finding leadership overlooked or unknown to many competitors.” 

Mr. Raben is a retired Military Intelligence Officer with decorated combat service in Viet Nam. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in (Economics and Business) from Southwestern University and completed courses toward a Master’s degree in Economics at The University of Texas. He is a Director of The Coronado Club (Houston) and Trustee of Southwestern University.

About Preng & Associates

Preng & Associates is the world’s leading executive search firm totally dedicated to the energy industry. For 35 years, Preng & Associates has assisted nearly 700 management teams and Boards attain exceptional talent who have delivered long-term value.

Exclusive Interview: Stephens E&P Research

By Uncategorized

Short Term Oversupply, Permian in the Pole Position

Oil & Gas 360® interviewed Stephens Inc. Senior Vice President E&P Research, Will Green, and Vice President E&P Research, Ben Wyatt, this week, in pursuit of their view of the current commodities cycle and related effect on the E&P space, looking at 2015 and beyond.

Oil and Gas 360® caught up with Will Green and Ben Wyatt by telephone at Stephens’ Fort Worth offices on Monday:

OAG360:  How is the current oil price drop different from other cycles?

WILL GREEN:  Today’s cycle is driven by supply/demand. This time the industry has to own up to the supply issue. The industry has to actively look at itself in the mirror in terms of admitting that it was involved in oversupplying the situation. The companies we cover are doing what they believe is the right thing for investors—growing production, growing revenues. But it’s prudent now to cut back to where hedges support you a little bit. It’s a hard decision, but they realize what needs to be shuttered and cut back. The prudent decision is definitely to cut back.

OAG360:  What’s going to cause a bounce, what’s going to happen that shows the bottom?

WILL GREEN:  I think one thing is this—actually getting some support from the demand side. It’s a good step in the right direction to see a reduction in production [and let some of the oversupply work itself out], but if we see continued economic strength in China, if China or other emerging markets blossom and demand remains strong, we should start to find support.

OAG360:  What is Stephens’ deck calling for oil to be in 2015?

WILL GREEN:  We just updated our deck today. We’re calling for WTI to average $53.75 in 2015, $67.50 in 2016 and $80 in 2017 and beyond. It’s a tad bit higher than strip. We are long term bulls on oil & gas:  we believe this is a short term oversupply that fixes itself relatively quickly.

OAG360:  If oil stays at today’s levels for a good while, what is going to happen to the midstream sector?

BEN WYATT:  You’ll clearly see some slowdown. The midstream companies need the E&Ps to commit to capacity. They’re not going to build a spec pipeline, for example, without strong long term commitments from the E&Ps, and in this price environment it becomes more challenging. So it clearly dominoes.

OAG360:  Which basins have the best upside for E&Ps?

WILL GREEN:  From a wellhead economics standpoint, I’ll put the Permian in the pole position, the Eagle Ford second and the Bakken falls behind those. From an equity standpoint, the Bakken has sold off harder, so I would look at the Bakken as offering better values today. It was driven by consensus thought. The consensus thought was to shed the Bakken because of its higher differentials, so those operators have been sold way down, so there’s a lot of value there in the equities. But if you look purely at the wellhead economics in the core of the Permian, it can stand up to virtually anything in North America.

OAG360:  Where does OPEC fit into the equation – how low can they let this go?

WILL GREEN:  I think this downturn is really going to test their resolve. There are some troubled OPEC nations who are definitely struggling through this. It’s the Saudis’ M.O. not to cut production, and if their projects are economic they should keep producing, just like any other country or company would. If we’re still sitting here [at these prices] the next time OPEC meets, and Venezuela or some other OPEC nations can’t make their quota and if Saudi can’t take over a burden of another 1-2 million barrels a day, then you’ll see some price movement. If the planet needs 90 million barrels of oil per day, it’s the last barrel needed that sets the price. Ultimately if we have 90 MMBOPD that can be produced at $45 per barrel, then that’s the price. For now, investors are waiting until there’s more clarity around the demand side.

OAG360:  What will M&A look like in 2015?

WILL GREEN:  The balance sheets are center stage for this group [E&P]. On one hand you might have a more motivated seller because of their debt burden, but they’re not willing to sell unless they’re forced. From a buyer’s perspective, buyers are trying to maintain their balance sheets. If prices and activity get back on track later in the year, you could see offers, but right now there are dis-incentivized buyers and sellers.

BEN WYATT: I would add that a lot of these guys are well hedged, so you do have some time—maybe six months—but as we get closer to 2016 you might see some sellers who are more open to the idea.

Full Article: http://www.oilandgas360.com/oil-gas-360-exclusive-interview-stephens-ep-research/