Occidental Petroleum Corporatio 8K Occidental Petroleum Announces First Quarter 2006 Results | OXY 25 Apr 06

EXHIBIT 99.1

For Immediate Release: April 25, 2006

OCCIDENTAL PETROLEUM ANNOUNCES FIRST QUARTER 2006 RESULTS

LOS ANGELES -- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: OXY) announced net income for the first quarter 2006 of $1.23 billion ($2.90 basic per share), compared with $846 million ($2.11 basic per share) for the first quarter 2005. Diluted earnings were $2.86 per share for the first quarter 2006, compared with $2.08 per share for the first quarter 2005.

In announcing the results, Dr. Ray R. Irani, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said, "The first quarter daily production was 636,000 barrels of oil equivalent, the highest quarterly production in Oxy's history. This was an increase of 13 percent over the first quarter of 2005. We expect production for the second quarter to be approximately 650,000 BOE, which would be another record. First quarter core earnings of $1.22 billion set a new record surpassing the previous record set in the last quarter of 2005."

Oil and Gas

Oil and gas segment earnings were a record $2.0 billion for the first quarter 2006, which was a 48 percent increase from the $1.35 billion in earnings for the first quarter 2005. The first quarter 2006 earnings reflected a $700 million improvement from the impact of higher energy prices and $198 million increase from higher production, partially offset by higher operating expenses and increased DD&A rates.

For the quarter, oil and gas daily production averaged a record high 636,000 barrels of oil equivalent(BOE), which was a 13 percent increase over the 565,000 equivalent barrels per day produced in the first quarter 2005. The increase included two months of Vintage production at 57,000 BOE per day which added 38,000 BOE per day to Occidental's quarterly production, Libya production of 22,000 BOE per day that came on line in the third quarter of 2005, and 25,000 BOE per day from Permian acquisitions that were acquired in the second quarter of 2005. Compared to a

year ago, production under the Company's production sharing contracts in Oman, Qatar, Yemen and Long Beach was negatively impacted by higher prices. The average price for West Texas Intermediate crude oil in the first quarter 2006 was $63.48 per barrel compared to $49.84 per barrel in the first quarter 2005. If prices had remained at first quarter 2005 levels, production in the first quarter 2006 would have been 8,000 equivalent barrels per day higher.

Chemicals

Chemical segment earnings were $248 million for the first quarter 2006, compared with $214 million for the first quarter 2005. The improvement was due to increased volumes in chlor-alkali and higher margins in chlor-alkali and polyvinyl chloride, resulting from higher sales prices, partially offset by higher energy and feedstock costs.

Core Earnings

Core earnings for the first quarter 2006 were $1.22 billion ($2.87 basic per share), compared with $866 million ($2.16 basic per share) for the same period in 2005. See the attached schedule for a reconciliation of net income to core earnings for the first quarter.

Statements in this release that contain words such as "will," "expect" or "estimate," or otherwise relate to the future, are forward-looking and involve risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect expected results. Factors that could cause results to differ materially include, but are not limited to: exploration risks such as drilling of unsuccessful wells, global commodity pricing fluctuations, changes in tax rates, and supply/demand considerations for oil, gas and chemicals; higher-than-expected costs; and not successfully completing (or any material delay in) any expansion, capital expenditure, acquisition, or disposition. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements which speak only as of the date of this presentation. Unless legally

required, Occidental does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. U.S. investors are urged to consider carefully the disclosure in our Form 10-K, available through the following toll-free telephone number, 1-888-OXYPETE (1-888-699-7383) or on the Internet at http://www.oxy.com. You also can obtain a copy from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330.

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Contacts:	Lawrence P. Meriage (media)
	310-443-6562
	Kenneth J. Huffman (investors)
	212-603-8183
	For further analysis of Occidental's quarterly performance, please visit the web site: www.oxy.com

SUMMARY OF SEGMENT NET SALES AND EARNINGS

	First Quarter
(In millions, except per-share amounts)	2006			2005
SEGMENT NET SALES
Oil and Gas	$	3,299		$	2,219
Chemical		1,241			1,061
Other		30			23
Net sales	$	4,570		$	3,303
SEGMENT EARNINGS
Oil and Gas	$	2,002		$	1,349
Chemical		248			214
		2,250			1,563
Unallocated Corporate Items
Interest expense, net (a)		(29	)		(61	)
Income taxes (b)		(932	)		(601	)
Other		(73	)		(51	)

Income from Continuing Operations		1,216			850
Discontinued operations, net (c)		13			(4	)
NET INCOME	$	1,229		$	846
BASIC EARNINGS PER COMMON SHARE
Income from continuing operations	$	2.87		$	2.12
Discontinued operations, net (c)		0.03			(0.01	)
	$	2.90		$	2.11
DILUTED EARNINGS PER COMMON SHARE
Income from continuing operations	$	2.83		$	2.09
Discontinued operations, net (c)		0.03			(0.01	)
	$	2.86		$	2.08
AVERAGE BASIC COMMON SHARES OUTSTANDING		424.2			400.4

See footnotes on following page.

(a)	The first quarter 2005 includes a $10 million pre-tax interest charge to redeem all the outstanding 7.65 percent senior notes, which were due in February 2006.

(b)	The first quarter 2005 includes a $10 million charge, net, related to a state income tax issue.

(c)	The first quarter 2006 discontinued operations represent the net after tax results of the operations of the Vintage properties that are held for sale.

SUMMARY OF CAPITAL EXPENDITURES AND DD&A EXPENSE

	First Quarter
($ millions)	2006		2005

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES	$	605	$	536
DEPRECIATION, DEPLETION AND
AMORTIZATION OF ASSETS	$	480	$	344

SUMMARY OF OPERATING STATISTICS

	First Quarter
	2006		2005

NET OIL, GAS AND LIQUIDS
PRODUCTION PER DAY

United States
Crude oil and liquids (MBBL)
California	82		77
Permian	166		148
Horn Mountain	15		18
Hugoton and other	3		4
Total	266		247

Natural Gas (MMCF)
California	250		241
Hugoton and other	133		129
Permian	189		146
Horn Mountain	10		12
Total	582		528

Latin America
Crude oil (MBBL)
Argentina	24		–
Colombia	39		32
Ecuador	44		42
Total	107		74

Natural Gas (MMCF)
Argentina	13		–
Bolivia	13		–
Total	26		–

Middle East/North Africa
Crude oil (MBBL)
Oman	17		23
Qatar	44		43
Yemen	32		35
Libya	22		–
Total	115		101

Natural Gas (MMCF)
Oman	25		56

Other Eastern Hemisphere
Crude oil (MBBL)
Pakistan	4		5

Natural Gas (MMCF)
Pakistan	75		78

Barrels of Oil Equivalent (MBOE)
Subtotal consolidated subsidiaries	610		537
Colombia-minority interest	(5	)	(4	)
Russia-Occidental net interest	29		30
Yemen-Occidental net interest	2		2
Total Worldwide Production (MBOE)	636		565

SIGNIFICANT TRANSACTIONS AND EVENTS AFFECTING EARNINGS (continued)

Occidental's results of operation often include the effects of significant transactions and events affecting earnings that vary widely and unpredictably in nature, timing and amount. Therefore, management uses a measure called "core earnings," which excludes those items. This non-GAAP measure is not meant to disassociate those items from management's performance, but rather is meant to provide useful information to investors interested in comparing Occidental's earnings performance between periods. Reported earnings are considered representative of management's performance over the long term. Core earnings is not considered to be an alternative to operating income in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

($ millions, except	First Quarter
per-share amounts)	2006			EPS		2005			EPS
TOTAL REPORTED EARNINGS	$	1,229		$	2.90	$	846		$	2.11
Oil and Gas
Segment Earnings	$	2,002				$	1,349
No significant items affecting earnings		–					–
Segment Core Earnings		2,002					1,349

Chemicals
Segment Earnings		248					214
No significant items affecting earnings		–					–
Segment Core Earnings		248					214
Total Segment Core Earnings		2,250					1,563

Corporate
Corporate Results – Non Segment*		(1,021	)				(717	)
Less:
Debt purchase expense		–					(10	)
State tax issue		–					(10	)
Tax effect of pre-tax adjustments		–					4
Discontinued operations, net**		13					(4	)
Corporate Core Results – Non Segment		(1,034	)				(697	)
TOTAL CORE EARNINGS	$	1,216		$	2.87	$	866		$	2.16

*	Interest expense, income taxes, G&A expense and other, and non-core items.
**	Amounts shown after tax.

ITEMS AFFECTING COMPARABILITY OF CORE EARNINGS BETWEEN PERIODS

The item(s) below are included in core earnings but are shown in this table because they affect the comparability of core earnings between periods.

	First Quarter
($ millions)	2006		2005
PRE-TAX INCOME / (EXPENSE)

Corporate
Environmental remediation	(7	)	(9	)

Occidental Petroleum Corporatio (OXY) 8-KOccidental Petroleum Announces First Quarter 2006 Results