BP to sell $7 billion in assets to Apache

apache_egypt.top.jpgThe Permian field in Egypt, where BP is selling some assets. By Steve Hargreaves, Senior writer


NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- BP said Tuesday it is selling $7 billion worth of oil and gas assets to oil firm Apache, in the wake of the Gulf oil spill that's draining its balance sheet.

The properties being sold are oil and gas fields and processing plants in Texas and southeast New Mexico, Western Canada, and production and exploration rights in Egypt.

"The board has considered BP's options for generating the cash necessary to meet the obligations likely to arise from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill," BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg said in a statement.

BP (BP) has pledged up $20 billion in compensation funds to the U.S. government as a result of its role in the Gulf oil spill. The company's stock price has been halved since the April 20 disaster, and speculation has been swirling for weeks that it could be taken over by a rival oil company.

BP has suspended its first, second and third quarter dividends, and has reportedly been in talks with sovereign wealth funds about cash infusions, as it seeks to raise money and avoid a takeover.

The asset sales to Apache were part of a previously announced plan to raise $10 billion.

Apache (APA, Fortune 500) is a company that specializes in increasing production from older fields that the major firms no longer find attractive.

"There are opportunities to divest assets which are strategically more valuable to other parties than they are to BP," said Svanberg.

BP is not selling any of its oil sands, Mackenzie Delta or Arctic exploration rights in Canada or any of its Alaska operations.  To top of page

Just the hot list include
Frontline troops push for solar energy
The U.S. Marines are testing renewable energy technologies like solar to reduce costs and casualties associated with fossil fuels. Play
25 Best Places to find rich singles
Looking for Mr. or Ms. Moneybags? Hunt down the perfect mate in these wealthy cities, which are brimming with unattached professionals. More
Fun festivals: Twins to mustard to pirates!
You'll see double in Twinsburg, Ohio, and Ketchup lovers should beware in Middleton, WI. Here's some of the best and strangest town festivals. Play
Index Last Change % Change
Dow 32,627.97 -234.33 -0.71%
Nasdaq 13,215.24 99.07 0.76%
S&P 500 3,913.10 -2.36 -0.06%
Treasuries 1.73 0.00 0.12%
Data as of 6:29am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Ford Motor Co 8.29 0.05 0.61%
Advanced Micro Devic... 54.59 0.70 1.30%
Cisco Systems Inc 47.49 -2.44 -4.89%
General Electric Co 13.00 -0.16 -1.22%
Kraft Heinz Co 27.84 -2.20 -7.32%
Data as of 2:44pm ET
Sponsors

Sections

Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More

Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.