Shell Buys Hess Stakes, ConocoPhillips Reveals Spending & Output: Energy Business Wrap

Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDSA)(NYSE:RDSB) purchases Hess Corporation’s (NYSE:HES) stakes in the Beryl area fields and the Scottish Area Gas Evacuation System for the amount of $525 million. The acquisition is said to be a “mild positive” for Hess in its endeavors to raise cash, according to Tudor Pickering, which adds that the deal is in line with its plans to sell off non-core, mature assets.

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Chief Executive Ryan Lance of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) said during his conference call that he anticipates total capital spending of between $15.5 billion and $16 billion in 2012, compared to the $16 billion that he predicted at the end of the second quarter. Additionally, Lance foresees Eagle Ford output to peak at 100,000 barrels of energy equivalent per day in the fourth quarter. For the third quarter Eagle Ford peaked at 86,000, which was a company record, and averaged 76,000.

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