From Breakingviews - Big Oil mega-deals would put investors on the spot
One is whether U.S. shareholders want the bother of a mega-deal in lieu of the huge buybacks and dividends they are currently trousering. Any cross-border deal would see Chevron’s Mike Wirth or Exxon’s Darren Woods take a big bet on continuing high oil prices, and also attract political heat. They might have to dispose of UK petrol station assets on competition grounds, and spin off BP or Shell’s solar and wind assets that form a part of Britain’s decarbonisation plans.
Shell also posted record fourth-quarter profit of $9.8 billion on the back of a strong recovery in earnings from liquefied natural gas trading, beating analyst forecasts for an $8 billion profit. Shell shares were up 1.8% by 1019 GMT. Separately, BP Chief Executive Bernard Looney plans to dial back elements of the oil giant’s high-profile push into renewable energy, people familiar with recent discussions said to the Wall Street Journal in an
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