Sandridge to aquire Arena Resources

[wsucougz]

SandRidge to buy Arena Resources for $1.6B - Yahoo! Finance

[SkyWestOKC]

Any jobs moving to OKC?

[Pete]

It says Ward and SR management will be running the combined companies and I think they have plenty of space in the old K-M building.

It's a good bet most of the Arena jobs will be moved to OKC. Looks like they only employ 71.

[SkyWestOKC]

Well, that's 71 more than we had before.

[jbrown84]

Arena is in Tulsa, correct?

[Pete]

Yes, in Tulsa.

And chances are, most of those 71 jobs are pretty well-paid.

[Midtowner]

Arena was a real up-and-comer in the energy business. This was a good acquisition. Let's all just hope that Exxon doesn't notice.

[mugofbeer]

I doubt it in the case of Sandridge. Too much debt and for an Exxon, too small potatoes. Devon and Chesapeake would be targets more their size - especially Devon due to the stock buybacks and debt reductions. However, in both cases, the leadership is pretty ingrained in OKC - though a super juicy offer couldn't be ignored. They aren't easy targets like Kerr McGee became with it's last group of leadership.

[Kerry]

I doubt it in the case of Sandridge. Too much debt and for an Exxon, too small potatoes. Devon and Chesapeake would be targets more their size - especially Devon due to the stock buybacks and debt reductions. However, in both cases, the leadership is pretty ingrained in OKC - though a super juicy offer couldn't be ignored. They aren't easy targets like Kerr McGee became with it's last group of leadership.

Plus, there is nothing like a billion dollar asset sitting in downtown OKC to keep a company here.

[mugofbeer]

Plus, there is nothing like a billion dollar asset sitting in downtown OKC to keep a company here.

...or at 63rd & Western.....but, if a cash flush company like Exxon has its mind set, there are always hostile takeovers.

[Kerry]

...or at 63rd & Western.....but, if a cash flush company like Exxon has its mind set, there are always hostile takeovers.

On a smaller scale, the Dodgers used to have spring training in Vero Beach, Florida. Over the year the Dodgers added to their property and it eventually reached a value of $10 million. Then the Dodgers decided they wanted to move, but they had this $10 million anchor holding them in Vero Beach. Somehow they convinced the City to buy the facility for $10 million and lease it back to the Dodgers in order to keep the team in Vero. The team moved the next year.

The best way to keep someone from moving is to make sure they can't afford to. Not quite the same since it was a relocation and not an acquistion but fixed assets really help.

[mugofbeer]

Having an anchor doesn't hurt but if you're making $75 billion or more a quarter, having a $1 billion write-off for an office building in OKC is nothing.