Financial

Weatherford International plc, the fourth largest global oilfield services operator, agreed to pay a $140 million penalty to settle charges that it inflated earnings by using deceptive income tax accounting, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said. Two former senior accounting executives settled claims that they were behind the scheme.

BP plc has requested a rehearing of a FERC decision last month that affirmed the findings of an administrative law judge (ALJ) and levied a $20.16 million fine against the London-based supermajor in a 2008 market manipulation case, saying it “is not the product of reasoned decisionmaking and is not supported by substantial evidence.”

“Given the ongoing distress in the oil and gas industry…” Lampert Capital Markets and the Louisiana Oil & Gas Association (LOGA) have made an alliance to provide “corporate financial solutions” for the industry. “…[M]any of LOGA’s members are facing daunting financial situations,” the trade association said Wednesday. “The current environment will require LOGA members to effectively address weakened balance sheets, resolve reduced cash flows, and achieve stabilization and growth through consolidation and acquisitions. Through this partnership with LOGA, Lampert Capital will aid oil and gas industry members in developing a strategy that will help industry participants achieve their financial and investment objectives.”

U.S. offshore operators face more stringent financial assurance and risk management requirements to ensure that they can pay to decommission and remove oil and natural gas production facilities, but critics say the changes could upend the industry.

Volatile commodity prices, supply risks and political/regulatory developments are the top concerns of U.S. producers, and the threat of bankruptcy has reached a six-year high, according to BDO USA LLP.

SandRidge Energy Inc. is evaluating options to take the company private or voluntarily reorganize under Chapter 11, the Oklahoma City-based independent said Wednesday.

In a series of U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings made since February, Rex Energy Corp. disclosed the toll that the prolonged commodities downturn has had on the company’s financial strength.

SandRidge Energy Inc. said Tuesday it will delay filing its 3Q2014 report until it has resolved a “routine review” by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which could result in restating almost two years of earnings results.

GE Energy Financial Services and an affiliate of Vess Oil Corp. are buying about 13,000 net acres in East Texas and associated production from the Woodbine formation from an EnerVest Ltd. affiliate for $108 million.