Exxon Mobil Corp. is looking to further reduce its debt, evaluating sustainability-linked financing instruments and preparing for potential new climate-related disclosure requirements, finance chief Kathryn Mikells said.
“We’re very focused on paying down debt further, [and] we’ll walk it down a bit more as we enter 2022,” Ms. Mikells said in her first interview since she joined the Irving, Texas-based oil-and-gas giant in August.
Kathryn Mikells, CFO of Exxon Mobil
Exxon took on about $21 billion in new debt in 2020 in response to the sharp declines in its business caused by the pandemic. The company this year has paid down billions, which helped bring its net debt down to $51.83 billion as of Sept. 30, from $68.57 billion at the end of December, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence, a data provider.
Exxon is also spending on its dividend—which went up by 1 cent this quarter to 88 cents a share—and on buying back up to $10 billion in shares during the coming 12 to 24 months. “We’re being disciplined in terms of how we think about capital allocation and looking to strike the right balance,” Ms. Mikells said.
Exxon earlier this month said it would pursue a disciplined spending policy for the next five years amid a murky demand outlook as the pandemic persists. The company, which slashed its budget for capital expenditures in 2020, intends to allocate between $20 billion and $25 billion a year for capital investments through 2027, a decrease of 17% to 33% compared with its pre-pandemic plans.
Deciding how much to allocate to the company’s various investments is one of the core responsibilities for its CFO. “We do more detailed planning on a longer horizon basis than I’ve seen at other companies,” Ms. Mikells said, pointing to Exxon’s spending plans for the coming years and targets for reducing emissions as far out as 2030. While some of its rivals have begun investing in renewable assets, Exxon’s investment plan remains largely focused on fossil fuels.