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 Marathon Oil Tower, former Marathon Oil Corporationheadquarters | |
| Formerly | The Ohio Oil Company (1887–1962) Marathon Oil Company (1962–2001) |
|---|---|
| NYSE: MRO | |
| Industry | Petroleum |
| Founded | August 1, 1887; 138 years ago (1887-08-01) |
| Defunct | November 22, 2024 (2024-11-22) |
| Fate | Absorbed intoConocoPhillips |
| Headquarters | Houston, Texas, U.S. |
| Revenue | 8,036,000,000 United States dollar (2022)  |
| 3,951,000,000 United States dollar (2022) | |
| 3,612,000,000 United States dollar (2022) | |
| Parent |
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| Website | marathonoil.com |
Marathon Oil Corporation was an American company engaged inhydrocarbon exploration. In November 2024, it was acquired byConocoPhillips and absorbed into the company.
Marathon was founded inLima, Ohio, as theOhio Oil Company. In 1899, the company was acquired by theStandard Oil Company (New Jersey). After theantitrust case against Jersey Standard in 1911 and subsequent breakup of its holdings, Ohio Oil once again became an independent company. In 1930, Ohio Oil acquired the Transcontinental Oil Company, which operated the "Marathon" brand of retail fuel stations. Ohio Oil continued to use the Marathon brand, and in 1962, Ohio changed its name to the Marathon Oil Company.
In January 1982, Marathon was acquired byU.S. Steel. After the acquisition, the USX Corporation was created to act as the parent of U.S. Steel and Marathon Oil, which operated as divisions. In 2001, USX spun off Marathon under the name Marathon Oil Corporation. In 2011, Marathon Oil spun off itsdownstream operations asMarathon Petroleum.
As of December 31, 2020, the company had 972 millionbarrels of oil equivalent (5.95×109 GJ) of estimated proven reserves, of which 86% was in the United States and 14% was inEquatorial Guinea.[1] The company's proved reserves consisted 52% ofpetroleum, 30%natural gas and 18%natural gas liquids.[1] In 2020, the company sold 383 thousandbarrels of oil equivalent (2,340,000 GJ) per day, of which 26% was from theEagle Ford Group, 27% was from theBakken formation, 17% was fromOklahoma, 7% was from the NorthernDelaware Basin, 2% was from other U.S. sources, and 20% was fromEquatorial Guinea.[1]
Marathon Oil began as "The Ohio Oil Company" in 1887.[2] In 1889, the company was purchased byJohn D. Rockefeller'sStandard Oil. It remained a part of Standard Oil until Standard Oil was broken up in 1911. In 1930, The Ohio Oil Company bought the Transcontinental Oil Company, including the "Marathon" brand name. In 1962, the company changed its name to "Marathon Oil Company".[3]
Ohio Oil finished an 8-inch pipe line from theirMartinsville pump station toWood River on December 21, 1907, work on the refinery at Wood River was underway.[4]
In response to a 1914 Supreme Court decision declaring oil pipelines common carriers under theHepburn Act and subject to the supervision of theInterstate Commerce Commission, in January 1915 the pipeline assets of the company in Pennsylvania (valued at $250,000), Ohio ($6,377,700), Indiana ($5,357,100) and Illinois ($7,815,200) were spun off[a] into theIllinois Pipe Line Company (incorporated November 30, 1914 in Ohio).[5][6] The segregation was reversed in March 1930 when Ohio Oil bought back[b] Illinois Pipe Line Co.[7][8] The pipe line ran fromWood River, Illinois to the Pennsylvania-New Jersey border atCenterbridge where it connected to Standard Oil's pipeline system and theBayonne refinery. The line also reached theLima, Ohio plant of the Solar Refining Company.[9] Maps: 1931[10]
In 1959, the Ohio Oil Company acquired Detroit based Aurora Oil Company which operated Speedway 79 stations and became an Ohio Oil subsidiary.[11]
In 1962, the Speedway 79 and Marathon fuel stations were consolidated under the Marathon name and the Ohio Oil Company is renamed Marathon Oil Company.[12][13]
In 1981,Mobil made ahostile takeover offer to buy the company.[14][15] However, the board of Marathon Oil rejected the offer and instead sold the company toUnited States Steel. A legal battle ensued thereafter.[16]
In 1990, the headquarters was moved toHouston, Texas, but the company's refining subsidiary maintained its headquarters inFindlay, Ohio.[17]
In 1984, Marathon purchased the U.S. unit ofHusky Energy for $505 million.[18]
In 1998, Marathon andAshland Global contributed their refining operations to Marathon Ashland Petroleum LLC (MAP), nowMarathon Petroleum.[19]
In 2001, USX, the holding company that ownedUnited States Steel and Marathon, spun off the steel business and, in 2002, USX renamed itself Marathon Oil Corporation.[20]
In 2003, Marathon sold its Canadian operations toHusky Energy.[21]
In 2003, the company sold its interest in theYates Oil Field toKinder Morgan for $225 million.[22][23]
In 2007, Marathon acquired Western Oil Sands for $6.6 billion and gained ownership of its 20% stake in theAthabasca oil sands in northernAlberta, Canada and other assets in themidwestern United States.[24]
In 2011, Marathon completed thecorporate spin-off ofMarathon Petroleum, distributing a 100% interest to its shareholders.[25]
In June 2013, Marathon sold its Angolan oil and gas field toSinopec for $1.52 billion.[26]
In September 2013, Marathon sold a 10% stake in an oil and gas field offshoreAngola for $590 million toSonangol Group.[27]
In October 2014, the company sold its business in Norway toDet Norske Oljeselskap ASA for $2.1 billion.[28]
In 2017, it sold its interests in theAthabasca oil sands for $2.5 billion and acquired assets in thePermian Basin for $1.2 billion.[29][30]
In March 2018, it sold its assets inLibya for $450 million toTotalEnergies SE.[31][32]
In December 2022, the company acquired assets in the Eagle Ford from Ensign Natural Resources for $3.0 billion in cash.[33][34]
In November 2024,ConocoPhillips acquired the company in a $22.5 billion transaction.[35][36]
In July 2024, Marathon agreed to a $241.5 million settlement with theUS Department of Justice and theEnvironmental Protection Agency to resolve allegations of failing to obtain required permits at dozens of the company's oil and gas facilities on theFort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota and releasing thousands of tons of illegal air pollution as a result.[37] The settlement included Marathon denying liability for the allegations but agreeing to pay a $64.5 million civil penalty, the largest fine ever imposed for violations of theClean Air Act from stationary sources, as well as agreeing to invest $177 million to bring its facilities into compliance.[37]
Since 2003, Marathon Oil and its partnersNoble Energy and AMPCO have invested in theBioko IslandMalaria Control Project (BIMCP) inEquatorial Guinea. The project includes distribution ofinsecticide nets, indoor residual spraying andlarval source management, preventive therapy forpregnant women and malaria case management, and investment in a possiblemalaria vaccine. The project has resulted in a 63% reduction in malaria parasite prevalence and a 63% reduction in themortality rate and 97% reduction in severeanemia in children under 5 years old.[citation needed]
According to a 2017 study, the company was responsible for 0.19% of global industrialgreenhouse gas emissions from 1988 to 2015.[38]
As of 2022, Marathon was the seventh-largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions in the oil and gas industry.[37][39]
The company was investigated for payments made toTeodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, thepresident of Equatorial Guinea.[40] The SEC completed its investigation in 2009 and did not recommend any enforcement action in the matter.[41]
Standard Oil Company, Inc. (1870–1911) | |
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