Tokyo — BHP Billiton is holding discussions with competitors on the future of parts of its US shale business amid heightened scrutiny of the unit from shareholders, including activist investor Elliott Management. The company recognised it needed alternative strategies for some of the assets, particularly gas-focused operations, CEO Andrew Mackenzie said on Monday in Tokyo. The were multiple potential owners of the assets spread across the states of Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana, he said. "We are in regular dialogue with those natural owners as to whether or not we can form more collaboration to allow us to share facilities, to drill longer wells and therefore have higher-productivity wells," Mackenzie said. "However, they may have a value of what we hold that’s significantly in excess of our estimates based on what we know we can do." Melbourne-based BHP would be prepared to discuss potential sales of US shale assets, which were acquired in about $20bn of deals in 2011 and were too ...
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