Vicki Hollub
As its president and CEO, Vicki Hollub is proud of Occidental Petroleum Corp.'s standing as a "next-gen" enterprise. In order for other companies to also gain that futuristic status, a multi-point set of criteria must be met, she explained.
The first point is to deliver solid returns to shareholders. The second is to be able to grow business, and the third is "to be able to have the inventory that you can both grow and grow with high returns over a long period of time," Hollub said, adding that she expects Occidental will conduct this process "through multiple decades."
"Fourth is to do all that while operating safely; we've got to strive to operate bestin- class from a safety perspective," Hollub explained. "Then you have to maintain a strong balance sheet as you're doing all that."
Next-gen aspiring companies must implement social responsibility programs that span all areas of operation and "enable those communities where you are to be better because you are there," Hollub said, discussing carbon management strategies at CERAWeek by IHS Markit, held recently in Houston. "Then make sure that your environmental footprint is minimized, both from a land perspective and from a water conservation perspective."
All of these steps must be accomplished while companies engage, develop and empower their people.
"That's what we have done with our people. That's how we've delivered what we've delivered," Hollub said, adding that its employees are Occidental's "lifeblood."
"They generate the success that we had in 2018, and that's been really important to us," she said.
"The last thing," Hollub noted, "is to have a strategy in place and the capability to become either carbon neutral or, as we believe we can be, carbon negative. That's 'next-gen.'"
Technology, collaboration, legislation
In addition to its people, Hollub said she believes the advancement of technology and "what we're able to do now with data analytics" is fundamental to Occidental's current success.
"With those tools comes the need for people. Some people say technology eliminates certain positions," Hollub noted. "Yes, it does, but then it creates other positions, different kinds of positions. And if you aren't equipped to fully utilize technology, you better get ready."
Hollub said she anticipates technology in the oil and gas industry will advance at a much faster pace over the next five to 10 years than it has in the past 50 years.
"I think you have to be prepared to take advantage of the opportunities," she said. "You might spend a few years and extra dollars today with the staff that you have, but if you have a competent staff and engage that talented and motivated staff, then what you should be able to do with that staff as new technology becomes available is going to be pretty awesome over the next few years."
Hollub is optimistic regarding the legislative and regulatory front as it impacts carbon capture technologies.
"There is new legislation that is being discussed that could help us with that, called the Use It Act," she said.
The Use It Act expands Section 45Q of the U.S. tax code, which provides performance- based tax credit to power plants and industrial facilities that capture and store CO2 that would otherwise be emitted into the atmosphere.
Hollub observed that 45Q passed in 2018 with the support of a broad coalition of organizations and companies.
"We had labor unions and NGOs involved, coal companies, the Carbon Capture Coalition -- a broad coalition," she said. "We think that the Use It Act is going to take a coalition to get passed, working together to get others to understand the cost of failure. This has to happen."
For ongoing industry updates, visit BICMagazine.com.
