Anadarko CEO Walker Gets $98 million golden parachute after sale

HOUSTON and NEW YORK (Bloomberg) -- Anadarko Petroleum CEO Al Walker will receive a golden parachute worth $98 million following the oil producer’s $38 billion sale to U.S. rival Occidental Petroleum.

The payout is part of $300 million to be shared among six Anadarko senior executives, also including President Robert Gwin and CFO Ben Fink, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission published Friday.

Occidental, which had been pursuing Anadarko for almost two years, trumped Chevron’s competing bid last month in what will be the largest takeover in the industry for four years.

Anadarko altered severance payments for its senior executives the day before Chevron announced an agreement to buy the company in April, setting them up to collect millions of dollars of additional compensation once a deal was completed. The changes meant the executives would collect 200% of their target bonuses for 2019, and included a vow to cover excise taxes on golden parachute payments -- a type of benefit that’s been criticized by shareholders.

Walker, 62. who has been CEO since 2012. He has total beneficial ownership of Anadarko stock valued at about $76 million at the current market price, according to the filling. That includes shares currently held plus and “stock acquirable within 60 days” due to historic bonus plans.