Chesapeake Executive: No Target Date to Find Permanent CEO

Chesapeake Energy Corp.'s acting chief executive declined to say Monday when the company expects to have a permanent chief executive to succeed Aubrey McClendon.

Mr. McClendon officially stepped down as chief executive Monday. Chesapeake, the second-largest U.S. natural-gas producer after Exxon Mobil Corp., has been searching for a new chief executive since January after Mr. McClendon agreed to leave the company he helped found, citing "philosophical differences" with board members installed by activist shareholders.

Chesapeake had been close to landing a new chief executive before an agreement fell apart in late negotiations, a person familiar with the company's inner workings had said. Chesapeake then named Chief Operating Officer Steve Dixon as acting chief executive, working in tandem with Chief Financial Officer Domenic J. Dell'Osso and Chairman Archie W. Dunham in a newly established office of the chairman.

Speaking with investment analysts Monday morning, Mr. Dixon declined to say when Chesapeake might have a permanent chief executive in place. He also declined to address reports that Chesapeake's negotiations with an unnamed candidate fell apart last week.

"Those are speculations and we won't addresses that," he said.

The board's delay in announcing a new chief executive doesn't bode ill for the company, which will have to find someone with experience running a large oil and gas production business and who will agree to move to the company's Oklahoma City headquarters, said Morningstar analyst Mark Hanson.

"I don't think it's a negative for Chesapeake investors that a CEO hasn't been found," Mr. Hanson said. "Being prudent is a good thing."

Chesapeake holds drilling rights to some of the most prolific sources of oil and gas in the U.S. But it has been battered by natural-gas prices that last year sank to their lowest level in more than a decade, forcing the company to sell assets to pay for its operations.

Chesapeake has since resorted to selling assets to keep itself afloat. The company is now focusing on selling smaller packages of acres than on blockbuster, multimillion-dollar deals that had been announced under Mr. McClendon's stewardship.

Chesapeake has already announced $1.5 billion in asset sales this year and says more deals will follow as rising natural-gas prices have made its acres more attractive to potential buyers.

Natural-gas prices settled above $4 a million British thermal units last week, the first time they have done so since August 2011.

"There's certainly sentiment in the market that gas has bottomed and is on the way up," Mr. Dixon said Monday.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Norway Oil Min: Statoil Pipeline May Pave Way for Permanent Arctic Hub

Statoil ASA's plan to bring oil by pipeline from the Barents Sea to a new terminal in the country's far north could pave the way for a permanent hub in the Arctic, Norway's Minister of Petroleum and Energy Ola Borten Moe said Tuesday.

"I am a huge optimist to what we may see in the Barents Sea," Mr. Moe told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview. "It seems Statoil and others are getting the hang of this, and that could mean huge, huge activity for generations. That is entirely good news."

A new terminal at Veidnes near Honningsvag will service oil from Skrugard and Havis, which has estimated reserves of between 400 million and 600 million barrels of oil.

Both Statoil and the minister were optimistic about the potential for more discoveries in the Barents Sea, which has not yet been thoroughly explored. Statoil expects to conclude a drilling campaign this summer, and said it's able to connect more pipelines to the new terminal if more oil is found.

"The facility is also flexible, and can take more resources than Skrugard and Havis. It's for the future," Mr. Moe said.

Norway is expected to open a formerly disputed area in the southeast Barents Sea for oil drilling this summer, following a deal with Russia.

"I want to be an optimist too, but we won't know until we have found something," said Ivar Aasheim, Statoil's director for field development in Norway.

The company is already part of two Barents Sea developments. It's operating in the Snohvit gas field and the Melkoya liquefied natural gas plant in Hammerfest, and has a 35% stake in the Eni SpA operated Goliat oil field, expected on stream in late 2013.

"This is a new petroleum province for Norway. That's good for Norway and very good the northern part of Norway," Mr. Moe told a small gathering of reporters, Statoil executives and Members of Parliament who were invited to eat cake at his office in the Norwegian capital. "We're having a little party here."

Statoil said it would deliver a plan for development and operation for Skrugard and Havis by 2014 and start production in 2018, expecting to produce up to 200,000 barrels a day.

"Statoil has worked steadily, mapping the resources up there," Mr. Aasheim said. "Skrugard and Havis is in a way our breakthrough in the Barents Sea."

Statoil is the main operator of Skrugard and Havis, with a 50% stake. Eni SpA has a 30% stake and state-owned Petoro AS--which manages Norway's direct ownership in oil and gas fields--has a 20% stake.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here