Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Apache Readjusts Its Portfolio; What About Its Exposure To Egypt?


By Sarfaraz A. Khan and Mehreen Tanveer

Apache Corporation (APA) is one of the leading oil and gas exploration and production companies of America. After divesting all non-energy related investments in 1988, Apache expanded its operations through acquisitions in America, Europe, Canada, Australia and Egypt. But now, Apache has been undergoing massive restructuring and is narrowing its focus on its home market. 

Image source: www.ApacheCorp.com
Apache has significant operations in Canada, Egypt, Australia and Argentina. However, in its previous quarter, Apache increased its production in the United States and reported production drops in all other markets (in terms of barrels of oil equivalent per day).

(figure 1)

After spending more than $16 billion on acquisitions since 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), Permian basin, Canada and Egypt, Apache announced that it will sell $4 billion of its non-core assets by the end of the current year, nearly doubling its previous divestiture target. The company will use the proceeds to reduce its leverage, buyback 30 million shares, and fund its capital expenditure.

More recently, Apache is now planning to sell its Canadian assets through two separate transactions for $112 million. These assets are mainly dry gas properties in Saskatchewan, and Alberta, that include 4,000 operated and 1,300 non-operated wells with recent production of 38 million cubic feet per day and 750 barrels of oil and other liquids per day.
In July 2013, Apache agreed to sell Gulf of Mexico operations, which it acquired from Occidental Petroleum (OXY) in 1986, to Riverstone Holdings' Fieldwood Energy for ….. Read full article with images at Seeking Alpha