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Berkshire Hathaway is buying Occidental Petroleum’s chemical division for $9.7 billion in what may be the last big acquisition involving the consummate dealmaker, Warren Buffett. Buffett wasnt mentioned anywhere in materials released by Berkshire Hathaway discussing the deal Thursday, potentially signaling a passing of the torch to Vice Chair Greg Abel, to whom Buffet will hand the CEO title in January. Buffett will remain chairman at Berkshire and will still be involved in deciding how to spend the conglomerates colossal pile of more than $344 billion in cash. Berkshires cash reserves have been growing for years because Buffett has been unable to find any major acquisitions at attractive prices since completing the $11.6 billion acquisition of Alleghany Insurance in 2022. Prices for big acquisitions have been driven higher in recent years by the entry of more hedge funds in the market. OxyChem makes things like chlorine for water treatment, vinyl chloride for plastics, and calcium chloride thats used to treat icy roads, along with an assortment of other chemicals. It will fit nicely within Berkshire alongside Lubrizol, a chemical company Buffett bought in 2011 for $9 billion. Berkshire is acquiring a robust portfolio of operating assets, supported by an accomplished team, Abel said in a prepared statement. We look forward to welcoming OxyChem as an operating subsidiary within Berkshire.” OxyChem generated $213 million in pretax earnings for Occidental in the second quarter, though that is down from last year, when it generated nearly $300 million for the company. This year, Occidental has been selling off some of its assets in the Permian Basin to generate $950 million to pay down debt. Since it completed the CrownRock acquisition in December 2023, Occidental has sold off roughly $4 billion worth of assets to help it pay down $7.5 billion in debt. This OxyChem deal will accelerate that. Occidental expects to use $6.5 billion of proceeds from the Berkshire deal to lower debt and achieve the target of principal debt below $15 billion set following the announcement of its CrownRock acquisition. Berkshire held more than 28% of Occidentals stock and had warrants to buy another 83,911,942.38 shares in the major oil and gas producer for $59.58 per share before this deal. And Berkshire held about $8.5 billion worth of preferred Occidental shares that it picked up in 2019, when it helped finance the oil producers purchase of Anadarko that Occidental has been paying 8% dividends on every year. Buffett had previously told Berkshire investors that he wouldnt sell off the Occidental stake and he has been periodically buying more shares, but he also told shareholders in 2023 that he had no plans to buy all of Occidental. Berkshire owns an eclectic assortment of dozens of companies, including Geico and several other insurers, BNSF Railway, a portfolio of major utilities, and some well-known brands like Dairy Queen and Sees Candy. Buffett has built up the conglomerate over the past 60 years. In addition to owning companies outright, Berkshire holds stocks worth more than $250 billion, including large stakes in Apple, Coca-Cola, Bank of America, and American Express. The OxyChem deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year. By Josh Funk, AP business writer AP Business Writer Michelle Chapman contributed to this report.
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E-Commerce
Investors are celebrating a major shake up in how FICO scores will be shared with mortgage lenders, as shares of parent company Fair Isaac have rallied more than 20% on Thursday. That stock rally follows FICOs announcement on Wednesday of a new pricing model that will allow mortgage lenders to calculate and distribute credit scores directly to borrowers, thereby eliminating the need to rely on the three nationwide credit bureaus for this information. In addition to its legacy pricing model, lenders can now opt for a direct license option that will save them up to 50% on per-score FICO fees. The FICO score is one of a few different credit scoring models that help lenders assess how likely a borrower is to pay back a loan. According to FICO, the score is used by 90% of top U.S. lenders. The new program puts pricing model choice in the hands of those who use FICO Scores to drive mortgage decisions, Will Lansing, CEO of Bozeman, Montana-based FICO said in a statement. A direct licensing program was always a possibility, Lansing said in an interview with CNBC on Thursday, but this move was primarily motivated by a call for increased competition and lower prices by Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. FICO UNDER FIRE Beginning in May, Fair Isaac came under fire by Pulte, who said he was extremely disappointed about FICOs announcement of price hike for credit scores, then announced in July that mortgage lenders could use a rival credit score, the VantageScore, to evaluate potential borrowers, and even called FICO a monopoly. I think we have responded to the call, and so I think there will be a lot of happiness around the idea that the score prices are flat-to-down for next year and we have competing channels of distribution, Lansing said on CNBC. Containing costs throughout the mortgage lending system will ultimately trickle down to consumers, he added. The surge in Fair Isaacs stock price on Thursday follows a three-month selloff of nearly 41% amid Pultes criticism of FICO scores. In a post on the X platform on Thursday, Pulte said he genuinely appreciates that FICO responded to constructive criticism with creative solutions that ultimately benefit American consumers. While their decision is a first step, it is appreciated. I encourage the Credit Bureaus [sic] to also take similar creative and constructive actions to make our markets safer, stronger, and more competitive. CREDIT BUREAUS SLUMP But whats good seen as news for FICO, at least according to shareholders, isnt so good for the three credit bureaus. Shares of Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax fell between 4.3% and nearly 10% on Thursday. Direct licensing could eliminate the margin that credit bureaus currently earn on the FICO credit score, according to Citigroup analysts. “Our initial reaction is this is negative for Experian and Equifax,” they wrote in a note.
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E-Commerce
The Trump administration is canceling $7.6 billion in grants that supported hundreds of clean energy projects in 16 states, all of which voted for Democrat Kamala Harris in last year’s presidential election. The cuts were announced in a social media post late Wednesday by Russell Vought, the White House budget director: Nearly $8 billion in Green New Scam funding to fuel the Lefts climate agenda is being cancelled. The move comes as President Donald Trump threatens cuts and firings in his fight with congressional Democrats over the federal government shutdown. These cuts are likely to affect battery plants, hydrogen technology projects, upgrades to the electric grid, and carbon-capture efforts, among many others, according to the environmental nonprofit Natural Resources Defense Council. The Energy Department said in a statement Thursday that 223 projects were terminated after a review determined they did not adequately advance the nations energy needs or were not economically viable. Officials did not provide details about which projects are being cut, but said funding came from the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and other DOE bureaus. The cuts include $1.2 billion for California’s hydrogen hub that is aimed at accelerating hydrogen technology and production, according to Gov. Gavin Newsoms office. The private sector has committed $10 billion for the hydrogen hub, Newsom’s office said, adding that canceling the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems threatens over 200,000 jobs. Clean hydrogen deserves to be part of Californias energy futurecreating hundreds of thousands of new jobs and saving billions in health costs, the Democratic governor said. California Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla called the cancellation of the project vindictive, shortsighted and proof this administration is not serious about American energy dominance. The DOE said it has reviewed billions of dollars awarded by the Biden administration after Trump won the presidential election last November. More than a quarter of the rescinded grants were awarded between Election Day and Inauguration Day, the department said. The awards totaled more than $3.1 billion. President Trump promised to protect taxpayer dollars and expand Americas supply of affordable, reliable, and secure energy. Todays cancellations deliver on that commitment, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said. The Trump administration has broadly targeted climate programs and clean energy, and is proposing to roll back vehicle emission and other greenhouse gas rules it says cant be justified. The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed overturning a 2009 finding that climate change threatens public health. Many climate scientists have criticized the EPA effort as biased and misleading. Democrats and environmental organizations were quick to slam the latest cuts, saying they would raise energy costs. “This is yet another blow by the Trump administration against innovative technology, jobs, and the clean energy needed to meet skyrocketing demand,” said Jackie Wong, a senior vice president at NRDC. Vought said the projects being cut are in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington state. ___ The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of APs environmental coverage, visit apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment By Michael Phillis and Matthew Daly, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
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