Occidental Petroleum Corporation announced that Chief Operating Officer Richard Jackson will succeed Vicki Hollub as president and CEO on June 1. The leadership transition, disclosed during the company’s 2026 annual shareholder meeting, follows a decade of strategic portfolio restructuring and debt reduction efforts.
As reported by Detik Finance, Jackson will also join the board of directors on the same day he assumes the chief executive role. Hollub, who is retiring from the top executive post, intends to maintain her seat on the board of directors after the handover is complete.
Hollub characterized the past ten years as a pivotal era for the energy giant, highlighting the recent completion of the OxyChem divestiture in January. The company reported record annual production for 2025, reaching 1.43 million barrels of oil equivalent per day while reducing capital spending and operating expenses.
“transformational” said Vicki Hollub, President and CEO.
The outgoing executive emphasized that the sale of the chemical unit was a strategic move enabled by the robust performance of the firm’s core energy assets. This divestiture helped lower the principal debt to approximately $13.8 billion.
“made possible by the quality of our oil and gas portfolio,” said Vicki Hollub, President and CEO.
Hollub stated that the current asset base represents the most resilient iteration of the company’s history. The 2025 fiscal year also saw Occidental add 2.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) to its resources, bringing the total to 16.5 billion BOE.
“As a result,” she said, “the portfolio we have today is the strongest Oxy has ever had.”
The increase in resources has significantly extended the company’s operational runway. Hollub noted that the current resource base ensures more than three decades of development potential that remains cost-effective.
“a new safety performance record.” said Vicki Hollub, President and CEO.
The company also highlighted financial growth during the meeting, noting the generation of $10.5 billion in operating cash flow. These results supported a dividend increase to an annualized rate of $1.04 per share following a board decision in February.
“more than 30 years of low-cost development opportunity,” said Vicki Hollub, President and CEO.
Occidental continues to utilize its enhanced oil recovery technology to optimize output across both its conventional and unconventional fields. The transition to Jackson’s leadership comes as the company focuses on long-term value delivery from its high-return oil and gas portfolio.