Pure

The Interior Department’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has to move from a “pure” compliance-type of regulatory environment to “something that is a more goal-setting regulatory regime” in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), said the head of a committee established by the National Research Council (NRC), which issued a study last week on offshore safety.

The Interior Department’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) must move from a “pure” compliance-type of regulatory environment to “something that is a more goal-setting regulatory regime” in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), said the head of a committee established by the National Research Council (NRC), which issued a study Tuesday on offshore safety.

ConocoPhillips, which is readying a spinoff of its refinery operations to reemerge as the largest pure-play explorer in North America, is planning to spend $15.5 billion for its capital program in 2012 and repurchase up to $10 billion more of its common stock.

ConocoPhillips, which is spinning off its refinery assets to create a pure-play explorer, has agreed to sell its interests in two U.S. pipeline companies for a total of $2 billion. An agreement with a subsidiary of Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec is for a 16.55% stake in Colonial Pipeline Co. and Colonial Ventures LLC; the transaction is to close in 1Q2012. Definitive agreements also were reached with Enbridge Holdings (Seaway) LLC for a stake in Seaway Crude Pipeline Co., which is to close in December. Once closed, these transactions, along with sales already closed in 4Q2011, would total close to $10.5 billion by the end of 2012.

ConocoPhillips, which is repositioning itself as a pure-play exploration and production (E&P) company, said its spun-off downstream company is to be named Phillips 66 and will house the refining, marketing, midstream and chemicals businesses. The repositioning is expected to be completed in 2Q2012; ConocoPhillips plans to file preliminary paperwork within the next week (see Daily GPI, Oct. 27). Both companies would be headquartered in Houston but would maintain a “significant” presence in Oklahoma, where the predecessor company was founded. Bartlesville, OK, is to be the global center for Phillips 66 technology, as well as the site of transaction services organizations for both companies. The ConocoPhillips E&P technology organization would remain in Houston.

Houston’s ConocoPhillips, which is poised to become the largest pure-play independent in North America once it spins off its refining unit, said Ryan M. Lance will assume the chairman and CEO role when current chief Jim Mulva retires in 2012. Mulva, who has run the company since it merged with refining giant Phillips Petroleum Co. in 2002, plans to step down once the repositioning, announced in July, is complete (see NGI, July 18). Lance currently is senior vice president, exploration and production, international. Greg C. Garland was elected by the board to chair and become CEO of the new downstream company. Garland is currently senior vice president, exploration and production, Americas for ConocoPhillips.

Once the spin-off of El Paso Corp.’s exploration and production (E&P) business is completed, the yet-to-be-named independent producer will be formidable competition in some of the prolific unconventional natural gas and oil plays in the United States, CEO Doug Foshee said.

A decision to spin off its exploration and production (E&P) unit as a pure-play producer will give Williams shareholders more opportunities to target their investments, CEO Alan Armstrong said Thursday.

A decision to spin off its exploration and production (E&P) unit as a pure-play producer will give Williams shareholders more opportunities to target their investments, CEO Alan Armstrong said last week.