LOS ANGELES, May 2, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Ray R. Irani reported on the company's 2007 record-setting achievements at Oxy's annual stockholders' meeting today in Santa Monica.
"There were many high points as Oxy ended 2007 with the strongest balance sheet in our history," Dr. Irani announced.
Notably, net income reached an all-time high of $5.4 billion, 29 percent above the 2006 result; cash on hand of nearly $2 billion exceeded the amount of total debt, which declined to $1.8 billion; and market capitalization stood at a record $63.6 billion. See attached schedule for a reconciliation of balance sheet debt to total debt.
"Our long-term business strategy of focusing on high-potential assets in our core regions and maintaining strict financial discipline is paying off and creating outstanding shareholder value. Oxy is in a stronger financial position today than at any time in the 25 years since I joined the company," said Dr. Irani.
Yesterday, Oxy's Board of Directors declared an increase in the company's dividend to stockholders by 28 percent to an annual rate of $1.28 per share of common stock, noted Dr. Irani. This is Oxy's seventh dividend increase since 2002 bringing the annual compound dividend growth rate to 16.2 percent over the period. Oxy last raised its dividend in July 2007 and the company has paid quarterly dividends continuously since 1975.
The 2007 year-end stock price of $76.99 was the highest in the company's history. Stockholder return, based on stock price appreciation plus dividend reinvestment, was 60 percent in 2007, another company record. Stockholder return increased almost 500 percent from 2002 to 2007, outperforming Oxy's industry peer group as well as the S&P 500 Index.
Oxy's worldwide oil and natural gas production averaged 570,000 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) per day in 2007, 4.6 percent above the 2006 average. Oxy led its industry peers in income per BOE -- the average realized sale price of oil and gas, less the cost of production, after taxes -- for the ninth consecutive year.
"Oxy's 2007 income per BOE of $21.30 was the clear leader among the major companies in our peer group," Dr. Irani reported. "This achievement reflects the quality of our assets. As oil and natural gas prices increase, the fact is that Oxy continues to outperform our major competitors in capturing the value from those higher prices and delivering it to the bottom line." See attached schedule for a reconciliation of income per BOE on a combined basis.
Dr. Irani also updated the stockholders on key 2007 activities in Oxy's core geographic regions.
In the United States, Oxy invested a total of $743 million to acquire several new properties in California, the Rocky Mountains and the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeast New Mexico. Collectively, these acquisitions increased Oxy's proved reserves by 50 million BOE.
In the Middle East, a key growth area for Oxy, 2007 marked the start of production for the giant Dolphin Project, which delivers natural gas produced and processed in Qatar to markets in the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Now in full production, Dolphin generated after-tax income to Oxy of $120 million in the first quarter of 2008.
Dr. Irani also reported that Oxy reached new 30-year agreements last November with the National Oil Corporation in Libya. When signed, the new agreements will provide for major redevelopment and exploration in Libya's most prolific producing area. "After initial capital investment, we project that gross production from the region we are developing will triple over the next five years to around 300,000 barrels per day," Dr. Irani said.
Most recently, Oxy signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi, providing for joint participation in developing hydrocarbon-related projects in the Middle East and elsewhere.
In discussing Oxy's chemical business, Dr. Irani reported that, "Despite the ongoing decline in housing construction -- a key market for our products -- the chemical segment still generated more than $600 million of income in 2007." In addition, he announced that OxyChem now exclusively uses mercury-free technology in all of its North American manufacturing facilities.
Looking ahead, Dr. Irani noted: "Our 2007 results are gratifying, but we are even more excited about the future. We take pride in being well positioned to excel in today's complex global environment. We believe the recent additions to our production portfolio, continued solid production performance, and promising new projects and opportunities will pave the way for another standout year in 2008."
About Oxy
Occidental Petroleum Corporation is an international oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, Middle East/North Africa and Latin America regions. Oxy is the fourth largest U.S. oil and gas company, based on equity market capitalization. Oxy's wholly owned subsidiary, OxyChem, manufactures and markets chlor-alkali products and vinyls. Oxy is committed to safeguarding the environment, protecting the safety and health of employees and neighboring communities and upholding high standards of social responsibility in all of the company's worldwide operations.
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: global commodity pricing fluctuations and supply/demand considerations for oil, gas and chemicals; higher-than-expected costs; operational interruptions; political risk; 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 filing. 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 Occidental's 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.
Total Debt
Reconciliation to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
(Expressed in $ Millions)
12/31/03 12/31/04 12/31/05 12/31/06 12/31/07
-------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Current Maturities
Long-term debt 23 459 46 171 35
Trust preferred
securities 453 - - - -
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
476 459 46 171 35
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Notes payable - - - - 12
Non-current Debt
Long-term debt 4,000 3,351 2,877 2,621 1,742
Unamortized debt
discount (7) (6) (4) (2) (1)
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
3,993 3,345 2,873 2,619 1,741
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Capital lease
obligations 26 26 25 25 25
Subsidiary
preferred stock 75 75 75 75 -
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
TOTAL DEBT 4,570 3,905 3,019 2,890 1,813
===== ===== ===== ===== ======
Income per BOE after Taxes
Reconciliation to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)
(Millions, except $/BOE)
For the Year Ended December 31, 2007
Consolidated Other
Subsidiaries Interests Combined
------------ --------- --------
Revenues $ 13,391 $ (68) $ 13,323
Production costs 2,690 (5) 2,685
Exploration expenses 422 (5) 417
Other operating expenses 615 (3) 612
DD&A 2,024 (6) 2,018
-------- -------- --------
Pre-tax income 7,640 (49) 7,591
Income tax expense 3,178 (6) 3,172
-------- -------- --------
Results of operations $ 4,462 $ (43) $ 4,419
======== ======== ========
BOE Sales 208
Revenues $ 64.21
Production costs 12.94
Exploration expenses 2.01
Other operating expenses 2.95
DD&A 9.73
--------
Pre-tax income 36.58
Income tax expense 15.28
--------
Results of operations $ 21.30
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