XTO founder says he’s seen worse times in energy business

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — XTO Energy Founder and Chairman Bob Simpson said as bad as the energy business is right now with plunging prices and frozen debt markets, it was worse when fossil fuel prices bottomed in 1998. The Fort Worth, Texas natural gas producer has put together an extensive hedging strategy to protect against big price swings,he pointed out. “We’ve seen challenges before,” said Simpson. “Everyone wants to say it’s the worst it’s ever been, but it isn’t.” Still, XTO said it’ll take a break of three to six months in smaller “bolt-on” acquisitions as it focuses on paying down debt. XTO officials said companies with less active hedging programs will be forced to cut back drilling more drastically. XTO is trimming about three rigs to 90 in 2009.
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Original post by Forextvblog

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