MOSCOW (MRC) - Several major Occidental Petroleum Corp shareholders have voiced opposition to the oil company's USD38 billion bid for rival Anadarko Petroleum Corp that now includes a pricey financing deal with billionaire Warren Buffett, said Reuters.
Occidental and Chevron Corp are battling for Anadarko and its holdings of nearly a quarter million acres in the Permian Basin, the top U.S. shale field, where low-cost production has helped turn the United States into the world's top oil producer at 12.3 million barrels per day. Occidental shares were trading on Thursday at USD57.48, down sharply from USD66.63 a month ago, prior to rumors it might challenge Chevron. It trumped Chevron's bid last week, and its offer now includes USD10 billion in financing from Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc in exchange for preferred shares that would pay an 8 percent dividend.
Major Occidental shareholders told Reuters they opposed the plan. They called the $76-per-share bid for Anadarko expensive and cited concerns about the cyclical nature of the oil business as well as the cost of getting financing from Buffett.
Several Occidental shareholders said they viewed Chevron's lower $65-per-share bid as a better fit because it could more easily swallow a company of Anadarko's size.
T. Rowe Price Group Inc, which holds shares in all three oil companies, cited merger risks and the cost of the Berkshire infusion. John Linehan, portfolio manager at T. Rowe Price, said Buffett's deal could allow Occidental to restructure its cash-and-stock deal to avoid a shareholder vote, although its current offer includes a vote.
T. Rowe Price, Occidental's sixth largest shareholder, had 21.1 million shares at the end of 2018, according to Refinitiv Eikon figures, along with 8 million Chevron shares and 865,000 Anadarko shares.
Berkshire would receive a warrant to purchase up to 80 million shares of common stock at $62.50 apiece in a private offering, in addition to the preferred stock that will accrue dividends at 8 percent per annum.
MRC