LOS ANGELES, May 17, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) today filed an arbitration claim against the Government of Ecuador, seeking redress for Ecuador's illegal confiscation of Occidental's Block 15 operations in Ecuador. The company filed its claim with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes in Washington DC, invoking the protections of the US-Ecuador Bilateral Investment Treaty. Occidental has requested the arbitration panel order interim relief by restoring its rights in Ecuador and preventing Ecuador from replacing Occidental with another third party operator in Block 15 until its claims can be decided, a process that could take well over a year.
On Monday, May 15, Occidental received notice that Ecuador was seizing Occidental's Block 15 assets, effective immediately. The process resulting in this unlawful act of expropriation began more than two years ago shortly after Occidental prevailed, by unanimous decision of an international arbitration panel, in a legal dispute over tax refunds that the Government of Ecuador wrongfully withheld from Occidental. The panel's decision was subsequently upheld by a London court. Occidental intends to vigorously pursue redress for damages resulting from Ecuador's illegal seizure of its Block 15 assets.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this release that contain words such as "will," "expect" or "estimate," or otherwise relate to the future, are forward-looking and involve risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect expected results. Factors that could cause results to differ materially include, but are not limited to: exploration risks such as drilling of unsuccessful wells; global commodity pricing fluctuations and supply/demand considerations for oil, gas and chemicals; higher-than-expected costs; political risk; changes in tax rates; unrealized acquisition benefits or higher than expected integration costs; potential failure to achieve expected production from existing and future oil and gas development projects; and not successfully completing (or any material delay in) any expansion, capital expenditure, acquisition, or disposition. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements which speak only as of the date of this release. Unless legally required, Occidental does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. U.S. investors are urged to consider carefully the disclosure in our Form 10-K, available through the following toll-free telephone number, 1-888-OXYPETE (1-888-699-7383) or on the Internet at http://www.oxy.com. You also can obtain a copy from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330.