FTC is searching for ‘smoking gun’ in U.S.-OPEC collusion probe

FTC investigators are looking for evidence of executives attempting to collude with OPEC officials on oil market dynamics, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not be named discussing non-public information. Such communications, particularly on pricing and output, could be illegal under US antitrust laws.

The FTC has opened several in-depth merger reviews amid a burst of dealmaking among oil and natural gas companies, particularly among those located in the Permian Basin, North America’s most-prolific oilfield. As part of one of those reviews, which are focused on whether a deal would hurt competition, antitrust officials discovered communications with OPEC officials.

Neither Hess nor OPEC replied to multiple requests for comment. Occidental, Diamondback and the FTC declined to comment for this story. 

Hess shares deepened losses to as much as 2.6% on the news. Occidental and Diamondback also extended declines to as much as 2.2%.

Antitrust regulators frequently view executive communications as part of deal reviews. In recent oil mergers, the agency has been permitted to search executives’ texts and emails for specific keywords such as “OPEC” or “shale,” one of the people said. 

The agency is looking for a so-called smoking gun to be able to refer a shale cartel case to the Justice Department, the person said. The FTC enforces antitrust and consumer protection laws and must refer any potential criminal activity it discovers to the Justice Department. 

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries isn’t subject to US antitrust law as a sovereign entity but US-based companies are.

The FTC gained access to the communications after negotiations between the agency and company lawyers. Antitrust enforcers in January retiterated that companies are required to turn over communications made via chats and messaging apps like Meta Platforms Inc.’s WhatsApp and Signal as part of the regulator’s normal review process. 

The oil industry has largely criticized the Biden administration’s policies even though the country is pumping more oil than ever before. But this is one of the most aggressive moves the administration has taken against the sector just months before the presidential election.

The FTC’s interest in messages from executives at Hess, Occidental and Diamondback is related to deals that each of the companies is pursuing. 

Occidental said in a statement Thursday that it plans to close a major acquisition next month now that the formal, 30-day government review period has concluded. The FTC reserves the right to intervene until closing, although it rarely does. 

The Justice Department declined to comment for this story.

Hundreds of Texts

The searches come after the FTC alleged in May that it found hundreds of texts between Pioneer Natural Resources Co. founder Scott Sheffield and OPEC officials related to oil markets. Those messages came to light as part of the agency’s review of Exxon Mobil Corp.’s $63 billion purchase of Pioneer. 

The FTC allowed the Exxon deal to move forward on condition that Sheffield be excluded from the suitor’s board. Sheffield has denied any wrongdoing and accused the FTC of “publicly and unjustifiably vilifying me.” 

In recent years, OPEC officials and shale executives have gathered at annual dinners and industry events, a sign of closer relations.

OPEC representatives began sitting down with US shale executives at informal dinner meetings as early as 2017 after years of increasingly tense competition. The emergence of the North American shale sector had upended the cartel’s decades-long dominance of the global oil market, prompting OPEC leaders to pursue a strategy of detente during closed-door gatherings on the sidelines of industry conferences in Houston.