DBRS Discontinues Nexen’s Subordinated Unsecured Notes and Issuer Rating

DBRS today has discontinued the Subordinated Unsecured Notes and Issuer Rating for Nexen Inc. (Nexen or the Company).

The discontinuance of the Subordinated Unsecured Notes rating reflects the Company’s announcement of their redemption on March 28, 2013.

The discontinuance of the Issuer Rating reflects the acquisition of Nexen by CNOOC Ltd. (CNOOC). As a result, the Company’s Issuer Rating is no longer stand-alone.

CNOOC is China’s largest producer of offshore crude oil and natural gas, and one of the largest independent oil and gas exploration and production companies in the world, with market capitalization of approximately $81.5 billion, assets of $65 billion and production of 909,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Operations are focused primarily in the South and South-East China Sea region.

Nexen Inc. became a wholly owned subsidiary of CNOOC on February 25, 2013. Nexen is focused on three growth strategies: oil sands and shale gas in Western Canada and conventional exploration and development primarily in the North Sea, offshore West Africa and deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

Notes:
All figures are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted.

The related regulatory disclosures pursuant to the National Instrument 25-101 Designated Rating Organizations are hereby incorporated by reference and can be found by clicking on the link to the right under Related Research or by contacting us at info@dbrs.com.

The applicable methodology is Rating Oil and Gas Companies (April 2011), which can be found on the DBRS website under Methodologies.