Astound! The acquisition of $60 billion in assets comes as the trillion-dollar oil giant reveals a big scandal: executives arrested for sexual assault
Per editor: Bi Lu Ming
At a time when the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has escalated and international oil prices have risen sharply due to the war in the Middle East, an executive of ExxonMobil (XOM), the world's largest non-governmental oil and gas producer, has exposed a big scandal. According to Reuters local time on the 8th, ExxonMobil shale oil and gas business head David Scott was arrested in a hotel on sexual assault charges. Public information shows that Scott has been with Exxon for more than 26 years, involved in some of the company's most important oil and gas projects.
ExxonMobil is the world's largest non-governmental oil and gas producer, headquartered in Avenues, Texas, USA, with a history dating back to the Standard Oil Company founded by John Rockefeller in 1882, spanning 141 years.
ExxonMobil's net profit in 2022 reached $56 billion, a record profit for the Western oil industry, according to the earnings report disclosed at the end of January. That equates to ExxonMobil's net earnings of about $6.3 million per hour last year.
ExxonMobil expects changes in industry margins to have a positive impact on energy products earnings in the third quarter, which is expected to increase by $900 million to $1.1 billion compared to the second quarter; Changes in natural gas prices will drive revenue growth of $200 million to $600 million; The impact of liquid energy prices was to push up revenue by $900 million to $1.3 billion.
By the close of U.S. stocks, ExxonMobil was up 3.5% at $110.92, with a total market value of $442.2 billion (about 3.21 trillion yuan).
ExxonMobil executives detained in Texas
According to interface news on October 9, Montgomery County police in Texas, USA, said on October 8 that David Scott, senior vice president of ExxonMobil's shale oil business, was detained on suspicion of sexual assault in a Texas hotel last week and is still in prison as of Sunday local time.
An ExxonMobil spokesperson said: "We are aware of the allegations but cannot comment on individual issues. However, we can disclose that this person will not continue to perform his job duties as the investigation progresses. All employees, officers and directors of the Company are responsible for adhering to the highest standards of integrity and conduct in support of the Company's business and otherwise. ”
According to Reuters, quoted by the Securities Times, Scott, 49, was arrested in a hotel room near Exxon's corporate headquarters. A staff member who saw the surveillance footage said one of the two women in his room left and called the police in the lobby. The room rate at this hotel is approximately $120 per night.
ExxonMobil spokeswoman Emily Mill said: "We are aware of these allegations and cannot comment on individual issues. However, we can say that as the investigation progresses, the person will no longer continue to work. She added, "All ExxonMobil employees, officers and directors have a responsibility to uphold the highest standards of integrity and code of conduct to support the company's business and beyond." ”
Just last Thursday, it was reported that ExxonMobil was in deep talks to acquire shale giant Pioneer Natural Resources, a deal that could value the shale producer at around $60 billion. According to multiple people familiar with the matter, the two sides may announce a deal in the coming days.
Public information shows that Scott has been with Exxon for more than 26 years, involved in some of the company's most important oil and gas projects. Originally from Australia, he started as an engineer at ExxonMobil in Melbourne and later worked in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi as President of the UAE subsidiary. He became head of ExxonMobil's U.S. operations in the Permian Basin in 2020 and was promoted to senior vice president earlier this year, responsible for all shale oil and gas operations.
Image source: Visual China
ExxonMobil intends to cross lithium processing
U.S. oil majors are taking an interest in lithium resource development and preparing for the post-oil era.
According to the interface news quoted by the Wall Street Journal on July 20, people familiar with the matter revealed that ExxonMobil plans to build one of the world's largest lithium processing facilities not far from Magnolia, Arkansas, USA, which can produce 75,000 to 100,000 tons of lithium per year. At that scale, analysts said, that would be equivalent to about 15 percent of global lithium finished product production last year.
The Wall Street Journal reported in May that ExxonMobil bought a total of 120,000 acres in the area for more than $100 million. A consultant for the seller had estimated that the prospect could be equivalent to 4 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent, enough to power 50 million electric vehicles.
The mega project could be built in phases, with modular trains likely to be built together or at different locations near its future lithium production facility in Southern Arkansas, people familiar with the matter said.
According to media reports on September 19, the California government recently filed a lawsuit against five global large oil companies, including ExxonMobil in the United States, accusing them of causing billions of dollars in losses and misleading the public about the impact of fossil fuels on climate change.
The 135-page complaint was filed in San Francisco Superior Court office by California Attorney General Rob Bonta against ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips and Chevron Petroleum, with the American Petroleum Institute (API) as one of the defendants, and the San Francisco Superior Court accepted the civil case. The complaint alleges that the companies and organizations orchestrated a decades-long disinformation campaign to obscure the link between fossil fuel production and climate change.
California Governor Gavin Newsom confirmed the filing of the lawsuit in a statement. "California is taking action to hold big polluters accountable," he said. ”
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