Occidental Petroleum (OXY): Chasing a 2027 Net Cash Balance Sheet [Q3 2026]

Occidental Petroleum hit its $10B principal debt milestone ahead of schedule in Q3 2026 and immediately set a $6B target—opening the door to a potential net cash position in 2027, even as its divested chemical business quietly drained $456M in quarterly cash. 🛢️

In this episode:

- Retiring $10.4B of debt YTD and targeting $6B next

- Why divested OxyChem still drained $456M in Q3 operating cash

- Permian Waha gas realizations flipping from -$1.48 to +$1.61/Mcf

- Buying third-party captured CO2 from gas plants to cut EOR costs

- Autonomous AI running 450,000 boe/d and diagnosing offshore pump bearings

While lower sequential crude prices cooled headline numbers from Q2 highs, OXY's post-OxyChem story is shifting from balance sheet survival to structural efficiency. We unpack how Drilling sidetracks in 50-year-old Permian fields, rolling off STRATOS direct air capture capex, and slashing interest expenses by ~$1B could unlock $700M–$800M in extra sustainable cash flow next year—assuming a pending $2.4B Anadarko tax court ruling doesn't get in the way.

Company: Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) | Q3 FY2026

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