Texaco, Shell stalled

June 18, 2001 Posted: 1136 GMT

NEW YORK (CNNfn) -- Negotiations between Shell Oil Co. and Texaco Inc. to unravel two big U.S. ventures have stalled after hitting a roadblock on the purchase price, according to a published report Monday.

The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the situation, said Texaco needs to unwind the U.S. marketing and refining ventures to avoid antitrust concerns as it moves towards being acquired by Chevron Corp. (CHV: Research, Estimates) for $35 billion.

In their merger plan, Chevron and Texaco proposed to the Federal Trade Commission that they put the two ventures, Equilon Enterprises LLC and Motiva Enterprises LLC, into trust so they can complete the deal, the report said. With the ventures, both companies would control 33 percent of the refining capacity and 40 percent of the retail stations on the U.S. West Coast, the Journal said.

Texaco is asking for about $5 billion, including assumption of $1.8 billion in venture debt, for its minority stakes, the paper reported, while Shell, a joint venture partner with Texaco, is willing to pay about $3 billion, including debt.

A spokesman for Texaco (TX: Research, Estimates) declined to comment to the Journal on the talks, saying "There is considerable difference between the two sides," while a spokeswoman for Shell Oil said the company is "prepared to close a deal expeditiously."

Shares of Texaco gained 92 cents to $72.58 in trading Friday, while Chevron gained $1.03 to $96.96.

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