Occidental Petroleum Corp. reported a $1.1 billion aftertax charge in the fourth quarter 2012, largely for impairments in its Midcontinent natural gas assets, executives announced during an earnings call on Jan. 31.

Marathon Petroleum Corp. has completed its purchase of BP’s 451,000-b/cd refinery at Texas City, Tex., and will rename it Galveston Bay Refinery (OGJ Online, Oct. 8, 2012).

Oil prices were up Jan. 29 with front-month crude increasing 1.2% in the New York market to its highest closing since mid-September, boosted by indications the US economy is improving. However, natural gas dropped 1.9%, down for the sixth consecutive session on forecasts of warmer weather.

Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (PNR) discontinued efforts to divest its properties in the Barnett shale saying that several bids were received during December but none matched the value PNR places on the assets.

CNOOC Ltd. has set a net production target of 338-348 million boe for 2013, compared with 341-343 million boe in 2012, anticipating the start-up of 10 oil and natural gas fields offshore China.

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP (KMEP), Houston, will purchase Copano Energy LLC, also of Houston, for about $5 billion.

Sinochem Petroleum USA LLC, a subsidiary of China’s Sinochem Group, plans to pay $1.7 billion to acquire 40% of Pioneer Natural Resources Co.’s stake in 207,000 net acres in the Wolfcamp shale in the Spraberry trend of West Texas.

Hess Corp. will exit refining by closing its 70,000-b/d fluid catalytic cracking unit at Port Reading, NJ, as part of a strategy to concentrate on exploration and production.

Nexen Inc. and CNOOC Ltd. mutually agreed to extend the closing date of CNOOC’s $15.1 billion acquisition of Nexen by 30 days to Mar. 2 because regulatory approvals have yet to be obtained from US authorities, Nexen said in a news release.

The oil and gas mergers and acquisitions market is expected to remain resilient during 2013 even though many geopolitical and economic uncertainties from 2012 continue, said an M&A report that Ernst & Young released from its London office Jan. 24.

Rosneft’s reserves of crude oil increased by 2% last year and of natural gas by 33% under Securities and Exchange Commission assessment methods, the company reported on the basis of an audit by DeGolyer & MacNaughton.

Eni SPA and PetroVietnam have signed a memorandum of understanding covering exploration and production business opportunities in Vietnam and elsewhere.

Bellatrix Exploration Ltd., Calgary, signed a $300 million (Can.) joint venture agreement with a company based in Seoul, South Korea, to jointly develop Bellatrix’s undeveloped Cardium holdings in west-central Alberta. The name of the South Korean firm was not disclosed.