- Business
- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY-WT) is an international energy company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration and production, chemical manufacturing, and midstream operations. The company operates through three primary segments: Oil and Gas, which explores for, develops, and produces oil, condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily in the United States including the Permian Basin and Gulf of Mexico, and internationally in the Middle East; Chemical through its OxyChem subsidiary, manufacturing basic chemicals such as chlorine, caustic soda, chlorinated organics, potassium chemicals, vinyl chloride monomer, polyvinyl chloride, sodium silicates, and calcium chloride at facilities in the United States, Canada, and Chile; and Midstream and Marketing, which gathers, processes, transports, stores, and markets oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids, carbon dioxide, and power. Founded in 1920 and headquartered in Houston, Texas, Occidental serves refineries, power plants, industrial facilities, and manufacturers worldwide with a focus on low-cost production, enhanced oil recovery techniques, and sustainability initiatives including carbon capture.
In recent developments, Occidental agreed to sell its OxyChem chemical business to Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7 billion to reduce debt and refocus on oil and gas operations, with the transaction pending as of late 2025; completed the CrownRock acquisition in August 2024 adding high-quality Permian Basin assets; raised $704 million in an equity offering in July-August 2025 to fund growth including carbon capture projects like the STRATOS direct air capture plant; sold select Permian assets in 2025 generating $950 million for debt reduction; and expanded carbon management through partnerships such as with BlackRock for STRATOS, ADNOC for potential direct air capture joint ventures, and off-take agreements with Microsoft, Amazon, TD Bank, and JPMorgan Chase for carbon credits.