Anadarko pulls offer for Apache Corp.

HOUSTON, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Anadarko Petroleum Corp. confirmed Wednesday it made an all-stock non-binding offer to acquire rival company Apache Corp. but later withdrew the bid.

Anadarko Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Al Walker said in a statement the company recently sent an offer to Apache Corp. for full-stock acquisition, but the offer has since been pulled.

Anadarko reported a third quarter loss of $2.24 billion, compared with a profit of around $1.1 billion one year ago. Like its peers in the industry, the Houston-based company is struggling to generate cash at a time when crude oil is selling for about 45 percent less than it did at this time last year.

Apache reported a third-quarter net loss of $5.7 billion. The company, headquartered in Houston, had no public statement on the offer from Anadarko. When asked about potential takeover offers earlier this week, a spokesperson said in response to emailed questions Apache would not comment on "rumors."

Walker, in a statement, said efforts to explore the merits of the offer were "summarily rejected" by Apache.

"We are unwilling to pursue the transaction without access to detailed non-public information, and based on our analysis, which shows that Apache appears to trade at or near full value currently, the offer was withdrawn," he said.

Companies working in the energy sector are struggling to generate capital in an era of historically low crude oil prices. In an effort to streamline operations, the board of directors at Shell and BG Group reached an agreement in April for the Dutch company's acquisition of its rival.

The deal, valued at around $70 billion, is among the largest acquisitions since the Exxon Mobil merger was completed in 1999.

U.S. oil services company Halliburton said last week it was offering five tranches of senior notes worth an estimated $7.5 billion with proceeds expected to help with its acquisition of rival Baker Hughes.

Anadarko wouldn't comment on the potential value of its offer for Apache.