Dec 5, 2023 - Business

FTC investigating Exxon's planned purchase of driller giant Pioneer

An Exxon Mobil gas station in Washington, DC, on Nov. 28. Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Federal Trade Commission is investigating ExxonMobil's planned $60 billion acquisition of U.S. shale driller giant Pioneer Natural Resources.

Why it matters: The merger would be ExxonMobil's largest deal since the two namesakes merged in 1999 and reshape the U.S. oil industry. And it would give the oil giant the Permian Basin's most prolific player.

The big picture: Exxon has stressed that even combined with Pioneer it's only about 5% of U.S. production.

But Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and over 20 Senate colleagues have alleged the deal, along with Chevron's acquisition of Hess, would harm competition.

Driving the news: Pioneer said in a securities filings Tuesday that it had "received a request" from the FTC "for additional information related to its review of the proposed merger transaction announced on October 11."

Pioneer and Exxon "continue to work constructively with the FTC in its review of the Merger and continue to expect that the Merger will be completed in the first half of 2024," one filing to the SEC states.

Go deeper: Oil mergers enter Capitol Hill's bloodstream

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FTC investigating Exxon's planned purchase of driller giant Pioneer

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