Occidental Petroleum's aircraft lands in Midland as oil prices tumble to pre-war levels

Occidental Petroleum's Embraer ERJ-175, tail N170XY, was tracked departing Houston Bush Intercontinental at 12:06 UTC on June 25, landing at Midland International Air and Space Port 70 minutes later. The aircraft's final approach coincided with a dramatic shift in global oil markets.

If Occidental Petroleum executives were aboard, the timing would place them in the Permian Basin just as Brent crude erased all wartime gains, slipping below $72.48 — its pre-war close — per the Japan Times on June 25. The same day, CNN Business reported tankers were again openly transiting the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S.-Iran peace talks unlocked roughly 93 million barrels of stranded crude. For a company whose Houston HQ oversees wells across the Permian, a visit to Midland would be natural amid a supply glut that has pushed WTI toward $69 — levels not seen since before the Middle East conflict began.

The flight follows a pattern: Occidental Petroleum's fleet had already made multiple trips into the Midland-Odessa area in the preceding days, including a June 24 hop from Carlsbad to Midland. Shifting global dynamics, including a surprising ramp-up in Venezuelan production and the IEA's record 400-million-barrel reserve release, per CNN Business on June 25, mean the calculus for Permian operators is changing fast — a fitting backdrop for any trip to the basin's hub.