[ROCKMAN]

ALL HAIL HALLIBURTON....ALL HAIL HALLIBURTON!!!

(Sorry...it's in my contract)

[Tanada]

Co-founder of Chesapeake Energy dead in apparent suicide after being indicted on charges of bid rigging while serving as head of Chesapeake Energy.

HOUSTON — Aubrey McClendon was the face of the nation’s natural gas boom, a swashbuckling innovator who pioneered a shale revolution.
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He built a fortune as head of Chesapeake Energy, whose embrace of new production techniques unlocked previously untapped deposits and helped wean the United States from ever-increasing dependence on imports.

But late Tuesday, he was indicted on federal bid-rigging charges accusing him of conspiring to suppress prices for oil and natural gas leases. And on Wednesday morning, he died in a crash in Oklahoma City after his car hit a bridge at high speed. Mr. McClendon, 56, was to have appeared in court later in the day.

“He was charismatic and a true American entrepreneur,” said T. Boone Pickens, a legendary oilman himself, who knew Mr. McClendon for 25 years. “No individual is without flaws, but his impact on American energy will be long-lasting.”

Even in a business known for bigger-than-life executives, Mr. McClendon was a mythical character. His interests went far beyond the oil patch, including part ownerships of the Oklahoma City Thunder professional basketball team and a winery in Bordeaux, France. He bragged about his $12 million antique map collection.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/03/busin ... .html?_r=0

[GoghGoner]

Wow, never thought he would commit suicide (if that is what happened). Since CHK was the most brazen company in the shale gas arena, I have followed news of him for quite a while. I always considered him a con artist and wondered when CHK would face the music for scamming investors.

[ROCKMAN]

Here's a bit from one of the industry rags:

Good Morning Oilpro Readers.

Whether you loved him or hated him, Aubrey McClendon always had your attention. Reflecting on the past decade or two, it's hard to name any CEO who left a more indelible mark on the O&G industry than Aubrey. There's also a very short list of CEOs that were more controversial than the charismatic firebrand.

Aubrey McClendon was shale. He was the ultimate capitalist, creating from scratch a company that would re-shape the E&P landscape and rival ExxonMobil for the title of largest US natural gas producer. Wherever Aubrey went, he commanded the room. His style permeated every pore of his company. He was a leader that plunged forward with reckless abandon and a full commitment to his vision. He was also a philanthropist, restaurateur, NBA owner, and billionaire enjoying rare and unusual luxuries - a $12 million antique map collection, a collection of trophy wines he stored in cellars from Maui to Vail, and millions of dollars worth of antique boats.

Just as in life, Aubrey's untimely death was anything but quiet and straight-forward. But, isn't he the last one you'd expect to fade quietly into the night? He was a born risk-taker that knew when to hold and when to fold. In the end, the phrase that sums Aubrey up best is oilfield legend. His legacy will go down alongside the larger-than-life oilmen that came before him - they just don't make them like this anymore. R.I.P. Aubrey McClendon, oilfield legend, 1959-2016.

[Cog]

Sounds like a good time to go long on the stock. Its cheap right now.

$3.78/share. I think I'll pick up a 1000 shares.

[GoghGoner]

Does look like suicide. I've learned something new today. A sociopath does commit suicide, not exactly for the same reason as most other people (the non-sociopath group) but to avoid physical suffering like jail time.

I do not really look down upon sociopaths. They are just different, like very tall people, geniuses, kids with ADHD, etc... Takes all types to make the world go around.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/oklahoma-city-police-set-release-174730620.html

The vehicle's data recorder showed that McClendon was driving 88 mph and then tapped his brakes, but not enough to significantly reduce speed. The brakes were fully operative, Citty said.

McClendon had his gas pedal floored until 1½ seconds before impact, when he reduced it from 99 to 25 percent depressed, the police chief said.

Investigators found tire tracks but no skid marks. Police are checking McClendon's cellphone records to determine if he was on the phone.

[Cog]

Well I made $500 on my CHK purchase and then got out. Might be another play coming up again.

[ROCKMAN]

Cog - OTOH if you had bought a blue chip stock like Chevron last August today you would have made a 37% per annum return AND would be receiving a 4.5% div. yield. So had you bought them you would have made about $1,400 is you sold yesterday. Plus your div....unlike CHK which suspended its div.

The stock market is s easy to play...in hindsight. LOL.

[Cog]

That $500 was made in an 8hr day. I bought the 300 shares at market open and sold them right before market close. It was obviously like playing craps but I enjoyed it.

[ROCKMAN]

Cog - You need to get into "high frequency" trading. Then instead of pissing away 8 hrs you can get the job done in 30 seconds. Then you'll have 7 hrs, 59 minutes and 30 seconds to play with your self. LOL. Gambling can be fun: I like watching my wife play quarter slots. And then when she runs thru her $20 limit I get to call her a "loser". Well worth $20. LOL

[Cog]

CHK price $6.06 hehe.

[GoghGoner]

CHK price $6.06 hehe.

The stock jumped over 50% in two days after it was announced they could continue to borrow money so they could continue to pay off debt. Something tells me robbing Peter to pay Paul isn't such a great business plan.

[Cog]

If you are in CHK GTFO right now.

CHK is a stock to play around with if you can lose the money, but a 50% gain is something to go ahead and take. There may be some upside you will miss out on but I doubt it. Their underlying problems are still there.

[ROCKMAN]

Details: " And the new deal with banks required Chesapeake to pony up lots more collateral to reel back its credit facility. Chesapeake said in a regulatory filing it has pledged "substantially all" of its assets, including mortgages covering 90% of its proved oil and gas properties."

Understand what that means: the bankers have no moved to the front of the line ahead of the shareholders and vendors.

[rockdoc123]

Understand what that means: the bankers have no moved to the front of the line ahead of the shareholders and vendors.

would have been that way in any event. Most of those loans are written in such a way as to put them at the front of the line.

The positive on this is if the banks already essentially own the asset they are less likely to shut the thing down as the current CHK team is likely their best option to have the fields run properly. Better yet they probably also get more Board representation and more say in how CHK run their operations.

[GoghGoner]

Understand what that means: the bankers have no moved to the front of the line ahead of the shareholders and vendors.

would have been that way in any event. Most of those loans are written in such a way as to put them at the front of the line.

The positive on this is if the banks already essentially own the asset they are less likely to shut the thing down as the current CHK team is likely their best option to have the fields run properly. Better yet they probably also get more Board representation and more say in how CHK run their operations.

Seems like they are trying to give CHK time to sell off enough assets themselves. That will leave the company with no resources to produce. I think quite of bit of those resources are worthless even at much higher commodity prices.

[rockdoc123]

Seems like they are trying to give CHK time to sell off enough assets themselves. That will leave the company with no resources to produce. I think quite of bit of those resources are worthless even at much higher commodity prices.

it looks like they are actually selling some assets that just a few months ago they were touting as an area of reliable future growth (eg. Powder River Basin Niobrara). Gone are the days where one could sell the marginal stuff around your "core" area, something CHK used to do all the time. Now because their are few buyers and those are all looking for a good deal companies like CHK are forced to sell some areas that are actually quite productive. It will be interesting to look at CHK 2nd qtr filings to SEC ie. how much production have they sold, how much debt have they resolved etc.

[GoghGoner]

http://www.koco.com/news/american-energy-partners-to-shut-down/39618082

American Energy Partners was founded by oil and gas pioneer Aubrey McClendon, who died in a car accident on March 2.

Jonathan Willner, economics professor at Oklahoma City University, said he was not all that surprised when he heard the company was closing down.

“He was the main driver of this, he had the charisma, he had the persuasive ability,” Willner said. “Without Aubrey McClendon it wasn’t clear that they had much of a way forward.”

[ROCKMAN]

“Without Aubrey McClendon it wasn’t clear that they had much of a way forward.” And without $90/bbl oil it wasn’t clear Aubrey had much of a way forward. Since its stock peaked around $8.50/share it had dropped about 85% to %1.50/share as the price of oil fell. Oddly since Aubrey’s death the stock has increased to $2.80/share…about an 80% increase.