Berkshire Hathaway is Acquiring OxyChem, Occidental Petroleum's chemical unit, for $9.7 billion

October 2, 2025

Berkshire Hathaway’s acquisition of OxyChem from Occidental—announced in October 2025—is one of the largest and most strategic chemical sector deals of the decade. This blog post delves into the financial terms, executive players, recent deal history (including Occidental’s major transactions), expected closing, industry impact, and technology sales opportunities arising from the deal.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation
NYSE: OXY
5 Greenway Plaza, Suite 110
Houston, TX 77046-0521
United States
Main Phone: (713) 215-7000
Website: https://www.oxy.com
Industry Sector: Energy - Oil & Gas E&P
Full Time Employees: 13,323
Annual Revenue: $27.15 Billion USD
CEO: Vicki A. Hollub, President, CEO & Director
Fortune 500 Rank: #159

Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
NYSE: BRK
3555 Farnam Street
Omaha, NE 68131
United States
Main Phone: (402) 346-1400
Website: https://www.berkshirehathaway.com
Industry Sector: Financial Services, Insurance - Diversified
Full Time Employees: 392,400
Annual Revenues: $370.15 Billion USD
CEO: Warren E. Buffett, Chairman, CEO & President
Greg Abel (starting January 1, 2026)
Fortune 500 Rank: #6 in 2025

What are the financial details of Berkshire Hathaway’s acquisition of OxyChem?

Berkshire Hathaway has agreed to acquire Occidental Petroleum’s chemical division, OxyChem, for $9.7 billion in an all-cash transaction. This makes it Berkshire’s largest deal since its $11.6 billion purchase of Alleghany Corporation in 2022, and the most significant chemical industry acquisition in years.

Occidental will receive $9.7 billion (minus customary purchase price adjustments), with approximately $6.5 billion of the proceeds directly applied to reduce Occidental's debt to below $15 billion—a key target following Occidental’s earlier $13 billion acquisition of CrownRock in 2023.

OxyChem produces essential commodity chemicals, including chlorine and sodium hydroxide, with significant applications in water treatment, pharmaceuticals, healthcare products, and construction.

Who are the executives involved in the transaction?

Several key executives have played central roles:

Warren Buffett: Current CEO and Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway. While Buffett has been the public face of the conglomerate for decades, recent announcements indicate he'll hand the CEO role to Greg Abel in January 2026. Buffett will remain as Chairman and chief capital allocator, maintaining significant involvement in major deals.

Greg Abel: Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Energy; he will become CEO in January 2026. Abel has publicly commented on the transaction, signaling his operational leadership in Berkshire’s next phase.

Vicki Hollub: President and CEO, Occidental Petroleum. Hollub directly negotiated the sale and has focused on debt reduction and balancing Occidental’s portfolio throughout her tenure.

Oxy Senior Leadership Team

Vicki Hollub
President and Chief Executive Officer

Robert Peterson
Executive Vice President, Essential Chemistry

Sunil Mathew
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Sylvia Kerrigan
Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer

Kenneth Dillon
Senior Vice President and President, International Oil and Gas Operations

Richard Jackson
President, U.S. Onshore Resources and Carbon Management, Operations

Jeff Bennett
President, U.S. Onshore Resources and Carbon Management, Commercial Development

Jeff Simmons
Senior Vice President, Chief Petrotechnical Officer

Christopher Champion
Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer and Controller

Wade Alleman
President, OxyChem

Jordan Tanner
Vice President, Investor Relations

Yanni Charalambous
Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Nicole Clark
Vice President, Corporate Secretary, Chief Compliance Officer and Deputy General Counsel

Fred Forthuber
President, Oxy Energy Services

Thomas Janiszewski
Vice President, Land, Regulatory, Government Relations and Corporate Affairs

Angela Johnson
Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion

Darin Moss
Vice President, Human Resources

Karen Sinard
Vice President, Environmental and Sustainability

Occidential Petroleum Org Chart - Executive Leadership

What is the recent 24-month background of acquisitions and divestitures for Occidental, OxyChem, CrownRock, Anadarko, and Berkshire Hathaway?

Occidental Petroleum (OXY)

CrownRock acquisition (2023): Acquired Permian Basin shale player CrownRock for $13 billion, adding significant oil production and deepening Occidental’s shale leadership but increasing its debt load.

Permian Basin Asset Sales (2024–2025): Since completing the CrownRock deal, Occidental has divested approximately $4 billion in assets—including four Permian Basin agreements in 2025—which generated about $950 million in proceeds for debt reduction.

OxyChem Divestiture (2025): The capstone move in Occidental’s “deleveraging” plan, OxyChem’s $9.7 billion sale to Berkshire will accelerate efforts to bring net debt below $15 billion.

Past Major Acquisitions

Anadarko Petroleum (2019): Occidental’s $55 billion purchase of Anadarko was one of the largest energy transactions ever, with Berkshire providing $10 billion in financing via 8% preferred stock (plus warrants to buy additional shares). This left Occidental highly leveraged, prompting its sustained focus on divestitures.

OxyChem
Position: OxyChem consistently generated between $850 million and $1.5 billion in pre-tax earnings annually, though Occidental revised 2025 guidance downward due to industry oversupply and margin compression.

Asset Profile: The sale marks one of the largest-ever standalone petrochemical company carve-outs.

Berkshire Hathaway

Recent Holdings: Berkshire has been accumulating Occidental stock for several years and, prior to this deal, held about a 28% stake.

Previous Major Acquisitions: Lubrizol (chemicals, 2011, $9 billion), Alleghany (insurance, 2022, $11.6 billion).

When is the transaction forecasted to close?

The deal is expected to close by the fourth quarter of 2025, pending standard regulatory and antitrust approvals. Some sources note the closing could extend into mid-2026 if additional review is required, but management teams on both sides anticipate completion before January 2026.

How will this impact the chemical and oil & gas industries?

The OxyChem deal holds several implications:

Strategic Refocus for Occidental: By divesting OxyChem, Occidental becomes a more “pure-play” upstream oil and gas operator, able to redirect capital to core shale assets and accelerate its post-Anadarko debt reduction. This divestiture “unlocks” shareholder value previously trapped under debt overhang, allowing resumed share buybacks and capital returns.

Berkshire’s Chemicals Portfolio: Adding OxyChem positions Berkshire as a leading player in the U.S. chemical industry, complementing its legacy Lubrizol acquisition. This increases Berkshire’s direct exposure to stable, high-cash-flow manufacturing sectors and creates new cross-selling, investment, and platform growth options.

Industry Realignment: The transaction is emblematic of ongoing industry consolidation and portfolio “high-grading,” as integrated energy firms reduce ancillary divisions (chemicals, midstream), and strategic capital consolidators (like Berkshire and private equity) absorb them. It could spark further specialty chemical M&A and encourage other oil majors to streamline their portfolios.

Market Signals: The deal is read by analysts as a prudent deployment of Berkshire’s $344 billion cash pile into a stable asset, also demonstrating Buffett’s and Abel’s continued appetite for large, “platform” acquisitions.

If selling to Berkshire Hathaway, OxyChem, or Occidental, what are the potential sales opportunities for a technology sales rep?

For technology vendors, the deal brings several gateways:

Berkshire Hathaway

OxyChem IT Integration: Berkshire will need to harmonize OxyChem’s IT, data, ERP, cyber, and compliance stacks with Berkshire’s decentralized but high-compliance standards. This creates demand for integration platforms, security solutions, managed cloud migration, and data governance tools.

Synergies with Lubrizol and Other Subsidiaries: There’s likely opportunity in cross-operating analytics, logistics, and procurement software, as OxyChem and Lubrizol have parallel supply chains, regulatory, and ESG compliance needs.

Berkshire Corporate: Berkshire’s decentralized structure delegates significant IT and purchasing discretion to subsidiary management, so individual OxyChem technology and operations leaders retain purchase authority.

OxyChem

Operational Technology: Expect ongoing investment in manufacturing automation (IoT, sensor networks), supply chain solutions, EH&S software, and chemical regulation compliance tools.

Cloud Migration: With a new parent and likely IT audit/re-platforming, there’s urgency for cybersecurity modernization, cloud productivity tool integration, and scalable data infrastructures.

Occidental Petroleum

Digital Oilfield & Upstream Tech: Occidental’s focus returns sharply to oil and gas, so vendors offering digital oilfield, reservoir analytics, cybersecurity, and energy-sector cloud solutions gain new relevance.

Shared Services Winds Down: Some back-office and shared IT functions for legacy OxyChem may be spun out or replaced, opening interim project and consulting opportunities.

Get access to deep dive sales intelligence on Occidental Petroleum

Who are the key decision makers to sell to at Berkshire Hathaway, OxyChem, and Occidental?

Berkshire Hathaway

Greg Abel (Incoming CEO): Sets overarching operational acquisition integration strategy and steers large-scale technology investments.

OxyChem President/CEO (TBD post-acquisition): Directs all OxyChem-specific IT and operational procurement; will have Board oversight, but strong divisional authority.

Berkshire CIO/CFO at Headquarters: While limited in day-to-day purchasing, they review all large technology deals for material subsidiaries.

Each Subsidiary’s IT/Procurement Lead: Because of Berkshire’s hands-off philosophy, OxyChem’s CTO/CIO (if appointed) and Plant Operations IT leaders will assess and select most solutions.

OxyChem (pre-closing)

Current OxyChem CTO/VP IT: Manages all enterprise systems—the top contact for digital transformation, cybersecurity, and ERP solutions pre- and post-merger.

VP, Operations and Plant Managers: Particularly for sales involving industrial automation, SCADA, and IoT.

CFO & Procurement: Responsible for cost control, risk assessment, and negotiating large capital or subscription investments.

Occidental Petroleum

Vicki Hollub (President & CEO): Sets post-divestiture capital allocation strategy and sign-off for major platform overhauls.

Occidental CIO/CTO: Key for any digital oilfield, data analytics, AI, or security platform deals as OXY sharpens energy technology focus.

SVP Corporate Transformation: Frequently oversees large outsourcing or shared services wind-downs.

Get access to the Occidental Petroleum Decision-Makers

Strategic Implications and Opportunities

Berkshire Hathaway’s OxyChem acquisition is a paradigm-shifting move for both companies. Occidental exits chemicals to become a focused oil/gas company with a healthier balance sheet, while Berkshire doubles down on stable, industrial “moats” under a new era of leadership. For technology vendors, the ensuing integration creates windows across both organizations—especially for those specializing in IT rationalization, manufacturing automation, data compliance, and digital transformation.

Key sales decision makers include Greg Abel and OxyChem’s new executive team within Berkshire, existing OxyChem IT and operations leaders, and Occidental’s C-suite as they retire legacy systems. Each is motivated by scale, compliance, and margin improvement during this transitional period.

Expect this deal to influence further specialty chemical M&A and IT investment patterns as the industry pursues greater specialization and operational efficiency.

Download the Berkshire Hathaway Deep Dive Report:

https://www.databahn.com/products/berkshire-hathaway-org-chart-and-sales-intelligence-report

Download the Occidental Petroleum Deep Dive Report:

https://www.databahn.com/products/occidental-petroleum-org-chart-and-sales-intelligence-report