ConocoPhillips Highlights Progress on Plans for Production and Margin Growth at Annual Meeting of Stockholders

14.05.2013  |  Business Wire

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is making significant progress on delivering
its plans for growth in volumes and margins, the company said today at
its Annual Meeting of Stockholders. The company reaffirmed its goal to
consistently deliver strong, predictable returns to shareholders.

'We believe we represent a new class of E&P investment ? one that will
strive to achieve the organic growth of an independent with the yield of
a major,? said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ryan Lance. 'We have
the diverse asset base, technical capability, world-class workforce and
financial strength to deliver on our unique value proposition.?

The company highlighted several achievements from the past year,
including progress on portfolio high-grading through closed and
announced dispositions, exploration success that included two
significant discoveries in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, and
peer-leading total shareholder returns.

'The ConocoPhillips asset base reflects our legacy as a major company in
terms of its size and breadth, yet offers the compelling organic growth
more common to independent companies,? said Lance. 'It also reflects
important diversification between a resource-rich North American
portfolio, a lower-risk diversified worldwide portfolio and an emerging
conventional and unconventional global exploration prospect inventory.?

The company also outlined five ongoing strategic priorities to drive its
long-term performance:

• Maintain a relentless focus on safety and execution, while
  renewing focus on organic growth, applying technology and delivering
  functional excellence. Keys to successful execution include flawless
  environmental performance, proactive stakeholder engagement and
  integrated sustainable development;
  
• Offer a compelling dividend, which provides investors a
  predictable annual return while enforcing capital discipline within
  the company. ConocoPhillips targets consistent growth in its dividend;
  
• Deliver 3 to 5 percent compound annual production growth, as
  well as growth in reserves, through drilling programs in legacy assets
  and sanctioned major projects globally. The company is also actively
  pursuing conventional and unconventional opportunities that can
  sustain growth well into the future;
  
• Generate 3 to 5 percent compound annual margin growth, over the
  next five years at flat prices by divesting lower-margin assets and
  shifting the company′s production mix to higher-value products; and
  
• Focus on improving financial returns, through capital
  discipline, high-grading the asset portfolio, minimizing investment in
  North American natural gas and optimizing processes and practices.
  

Over the next five years, ConocoPhillips plans to execute a disciplined
capital program of approximately $16 billion per year, supporting the
company′s organic reserve replacement target of more than 100 percent.
The company expects to generate 3 to 5 percent compound annual
production growth and margin growth from major development programs and
projects already under way in unconventional plays in the U.S. Lower 48,
Canadian oil sands, United Kingdom and Norwegian North Sea, Malaysia and
Australia.

'We have the talent and technical capabilities to operate globally in
any resource trend,? added Lance. 'Our strong balance sheet provides the
financial flexibility to withstand business cycles and to invest in the
development of our 43 billion barrel resource base. We will see a
significant inflection point at the end of 2013, as we core up and
rebalance the portfolio through asset dispositions and deliver on our
growth plans from our worldwide development programs and startups at
several high-margin international major projects. ?This will position
ConocoPhillips for ongoing success. Our transformation into an
independent E&P company is just beginning and we have an exciting future
ahead.?

Final voting results will be reported on Form 8-K, which will be filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These results and other
information, including presentation materials and a recorded webcast of
the meeting, will also be available atwww.conocophillips.com/annualmeeting.

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About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips is the world′s largest independent E&P company based on
production and proved reserves. Headquartered in Houston, Texas,
ConocoPhillips had operations and activities in 30 countries, $57
billion in annualized revenue, $118 billion of total assets, and
approximately 17,100 employees as of March 31, 2013. Production from
continuing operations averaged 1,555 MBOED for the three months ended
March 31, 2013, and proved reserves were 8.6 billion BOE as of Dec. 31,
2012. For more information, go to www.conocophillips.com.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE
'SAFE HARBOR' PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT
OF 1995

This news release contains forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements relate to future events and anticipated
results of operations, business strategies, and other aspects of our
operations or operating results. In many cases you can identify
forward-looking statements by terminology such as 'anticipate,'
'estimate,' 'believe,' 'continue,' 'could,' 'intend,' 'may,' 'plan,'
'potential,' 'predict,' 'should,' 'will,' 'expect,' 'objective,'
'projection,' 'forecast,' 'goal,' 'guidance,' 'outlook,' 'effort,'
'target' and other similar words. However, the absence of these words
does not mean that the statements are not forward-looking. Where, in any
forward-looking statement, the company expresses an expectation or
belief as to future results, such expectation or belief is expressed in
good faith and believed to have a reasonable basis. However, there can
be no assurance that such expectation or belief will result or be
achieved. The actual results of operations can and will be affected by a
variety of risks and other matters including, but not limited to,
changes in commodity prices; changes in expected levels of oil and gas
reserves or production; operating hazards, drilling risks, unsuccessful
exploratory activities; difficulties in developing new products and
manufacturing processes; unexpected cost increases; international
monetary conditions; potential liability for remedial actions under
existing or future environmental regulations; potential liability
resulting from pending or future litigation; limited access to capital
or significantly higher cost of capital related to illiquidity or
uncertainty in the domestic or international financial markets; and
general domestic and international economic and political conditions; as
well as changes in tax, environmental and other laws applicable to our
business. Other factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those described in the forward-looking statements
include other economic, business, competitive and/or regulatory factors
affecting our business generally as set forth in our filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Unless legally required,
ConocoPhillips undertakes no obligation to update publicly any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.

Definition of resources: ConocoPhillips uses the term 'resources? in
this news release. The company estimates its total resources based on a
system developed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers that classifies
recoverable hydrocarbons into six categories based on their status at
the time of reporting. Three (proved, probable and possible reserves)
are deemed commercial and three others are deemed noncommercial or
contingent. The company′s resource estimate encompasses volumes
associated with all six categories. The SEC permits oil and gas
companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved,
probable and possible reserves. We use the term 'resource? in this news
release that the SEC′s guidelines prohibit us from including in filings
with the SEC. U.S. investors are urged to consider closely the oil and
gas disclosure in our Form 10-K and other reports and filings with the
SEC.