ConocoPhillips, the $226 billion Houston-based oil giant, yesterday said that it will spin off its refining and marketing operation, in a move aimed at creating more value as two separate publicly-traded companies.
The announcement sent the stock pf the third largest oil firm in the US up by 6.43 per cent to $79.18 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange. ConocoPhillips plans to separate its oil refining and marketing business from its exploration and production operations.
The split would create two publicly-traded companies, one focused on finding and extracting oil and gas around the world, and the other on converting the crude into refined products such as gasoline that could be sold to consumers.
It is the first oil major to shift from the decades-old industry strategy of consolidating production and refining, though in May 2011 the much smaller Marathon Oil decided to spin off its refining business by forming Marathon Petroleum Corp, a stand-alone company.
ConocoPhillips will become the largest refining company in the US based on capacity and the largest exploration and production company based on oil and gas reserves
