Marathon Oil to Lay Off More Than 500 at Houston Office After ConocoPhillips Merger
Houston Chronicle | Marissa Luck | Oct. 31, 2024
Marathon Oil will lay off more than 500 people as result of its $22.5 billion merger with oil giant ConocoPhillips, the company said in a letter to the Texas Workforce Commission this week.
Marathon did not detail how many employees would be affected by the layoff, nor the types of positions that would be cut. However, the energy firm estimated that there would be “more than 500 employees at the company’s facility located at 990 Town and Country Blvd” — the address of Marathon’s headquarters in CityCentre. The layoffs would occur within a year after the merger is finalized in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the letter.
“While these employees will be notified of specific employment end dates within a month of close, many will be retained for transition roles. Transition role scope and duration are currently being finalized and more than 50% of these transition roles are expected to extend beyond six months,” said Jill Ramshaw, senior vice president of human resources, in the letter to the state.
Ramshaw said the Town and Country Boulevard office would remain open, despite the layoffs.
Houston Chronicle has reached out to Marathon Oil for additional comment. ConocoPhillips declined to comment.
After the merger was announced in May, ConocoPhillips leaders told investors they expected to save $500 million annually — including $250 million in general and administrative costs related to salaries, benefits and facilities — as a result of the agreement.
Previously, ConocoPhllips’ CEO Ryan Lance sent a letter to employees suggesting those cost savings were not expected to lead to ConocoPhillips reducing its workforce; but Marathon employees reportedly did not receive the same letter, Houston Business Journal reported.
Conoco, headquartered on North Eldridge, said in May that it had 2,100 employees in Houston. Marathon, which relocated its corporate offices to West Houston’s CityCentre in 2021, had 774 employees in Houston in 2022 – but a more recent headcount was not immediately available.