The short-selling faction relentlessly kept attacking.
And since oil prices in January 2015 continued their downward trend, Hess's stock price plummeted sharply.
It wasn't just Hess.
Not only American but also European oil companies faced financial tightening.
There were even cases where unprofitable businesses were sold off cheaply or liquidated.
Thanks to this, an unexpected opportunity came to us.
[Boss! Shell is offering to transfer the development rights for the offshore Guyana Starbroek block.]
"How much are they asking for? No, forget the price—we have to get it at all costs!"
[You should still hear the price. They say they'll transfer the entire development rights for just one dollar. However, there's a condition that exploration and development must continue.]
One dollar?
The development rights could earn tens of trillions of won if an oil field is discovered.
It was also an opportunity because we held a large stake in the Guyana fund.
"Get it no matter what. If necessary, even if we have to split the stake 50-50 with ExxonMobil, we have to have a foothold."
[I'll start negotiations. ExxonMobil probably wouldn't oppose splitting the stake. With such tough times, no one would refuse risk reduction.]
"Tell them to start investing today, at least for the exploration costs."
[Are you sure?]
David's voice was unusually downcast.
Probably because of the pressure from the short-selling attacks.
"Don't worry about the short-sell attack."
[But if news spreads that we are investing in exploring the oil fields owned by Shell, Hess's stock price will fall even further.]
"There's a Korean proverb: 'Would you stop making soy sauce just because you're afraid of maggots?' We don't need to hesitate on investments just because of maggot-like short-sellers."
[Okay! Then I'll step in and handle the preliminary negotiations. Later, President Han or someone from Taewoo Trading can come to sign the documents.]
"I'll go myself."
A business worth tens of trillions of won for just one dollar.
I couldn't afford to miss such an opportunity right before my eyes, so I hurriedly chose to head to the United States.
Shell, the global oil company famous for its shell-shaped logo.
It was a large oil corporation formed by the merger of the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company of the Netherlands and the British Petroleum company, so its headquarters were in the Netherlands.
However, its largest subsidiary was in the United States.
The American subsidiary, Shell Oil Company.
It was a company that produced not only oil but also automotive lubricants, and Taewoo Motors had a lubricant supply contract with Shell Oil Company.
That was why I visited Shell personally to conduct negotiations.
Raymond, the ExxonMobil vice chairman in charge of oil exploration, also attended as our competitor.
"As I mentioned, Shell plans to abandon exploration of the Guyana oil field. Although exploration has been ongoing for ten years, no proper oil field has been found. It's a business where we don't know how much more money and manpower must be invested."
"ExxonMobil will continue the exploration in accordance with Shell's intentions."
"The oil consortium is also prepared to continue exploration. We promise large-scale exploration through Hess, which has nearly 80 years of experience in oil field exploration."
Without hesitation, everyone delivered their prepared lines first.
It was clearly beneficial to accept the offer of development rights for just one dollar.
Shell knew this well and added some conditions.
"We must keep our promise to Guyana. Therefore, we want to transfer the development rights only to entities capable of conducting earnest exploration."
"As you know, ExxonMobil is still actively leading the Guyana oil field exploration."
"Hess, which the oil consortium holds, also owns a 30% stake in the Guyana exploration rights."
"But I heard Hess is under short-selling attack. Would it be acceptable to acquire new oilfield development rights under such circumstances?"
I expected such a question.
Anyone could see that Hess was in shambles.
The stock price was dropping more than 7% a day due to short selling, with short-sell amounts exceeding billions of dollars.
Attacks on Hess had become a trend in Wall Street.
There were even talks that Hess might go bankrupt.
"If Hess faces the risk of bankruptcy, we can draft a contract stating that we will sell off the entire Taewoo Group if necessary to save Hess and continue the Guyana oil field exploration."
"Do you mean selling off valuable businesses like semiconductors, automobiles, electronics, and construction to save Hess?"
"First, the possibility of Hess going bankrupt due to short selling is very low. Also, selling off just one affiliate, not the entire Taewoo Group, would be enough to avoid bankruptcy. However, stating the willingness to sell the whole group shows the strength of our commitment."
The Shell executives nodded.
They knew the value of Taewoo Group well, and seemed to believe that if the entire Taewoo Group was on the line, they could trust and entrust the business to us confidently.
"Next, let me ask ExxonMobil. Although not as much as Hess, ExxonMobil's stock price has also dropped significantly. Is it still possible to explore and develop the new Guyana oil field?"
"Definitely possible. We're willing to continue exploration and development even if we have to use ExxonMobil as collateral to raise funds."
Is this a sauna?
The office air grew hot as the intensity of the negotiation rose.
I wasn't the only one feeling the heat—Shell executives also sensed our sincerity.
"How about this: if Taewoo Group and ExxonMobil each hold 50% of the stake, wouldn't that cut the risk in half?"
"If ExxonMobil and Hess, both excellent in oil exploration, jointly conduct the exploration, the speed of discovery could certainly increase."
I nodded as if hearing this for the first time.
But this was part of the plan I had devised, and a proposal I had made to ExxonMobil and Shell executives through David.
"If ExxonMobil accepts, I would like the two parties to jointly develop the field."
"Agreed. We will discuss the details after the stake transfer."
"Good. Then we will draft the transfer contract."
The contract proceeded smoothly.
If it involved a huge sum of money, there would naturally have been many points to discuss.
But since it was a contract worth just one dollar, there was nothing to argue or review.
"If you sign here, the contract will be complete."
With a swift motion, I signed the contract.
At the same time, the ExxonMobil vice chairman and I both took coins out of our pockets.
"We will pay the amount now."
"Ha ha, ten years of effort for just one dollar—it's truly heartbreaking."
Two 50-cent coins.
That was the value of Shell's ten years of exploration in Guyana.
In reality, the amount didn't matter.
It was merely a symbolic sum representing a perfect closure.
"We will definitely succeed in the oil field exploration."
"If the exploration succeeds, this deal will be recorded as the worst in Shell's history. But we will support you. Prove that our ten years weren't in vain."
The Shell executives even had tears in their eyes.
Their tears carried many meanings.
Ten years of regret, and also relief.
If it hadn't been for the oil war, exploration would have continued for at least a few more years.
And they would have likely succeeded in discovering oil soon.
In the end, it was a matter of timing.
All the timing worked against Shell and favored Taewoo Group and ExxonMobil.
"Well then, we'll be going. You two stay and talk further. Since you'll be working together on exploration from now on, it's good to get acquainted."
"Well, I'll shamelessly borrow this place for now."
"I hope our next meeting will be with a better contract."
The Shell executives stepped outside.
ExxonMobil's vice chairman and I simultaneously extended our hands for a handshake.
"It's an honor to meet Chairman Minjae Kim of the renowned Taewoo Group."
"The honor is mine. I'm well aware of Vice Chairman Raymond's esteemed reputation in the oil industry."
The atmosphere was warm and cordial.
It was understandable, considering we had just acquired 50% of the stake for a mere 50 cents, making it hard for the mood to be anything but positive.
"It seems Taewoo Group has a keen interest in the Guyana oil field. Didn't you also recently acquire 10% of the Guyana fund's shares?"
"There are oil fields scattered across Venezuela. It's illogical for neighboring Guyana not to have any."
"Everyone thought so and began exploring Guyana. But after ten years, ExxonMobil is almost the only company left in exploration."
Even Shell had withdrawn.
Thus, ExxonMobil was essentially the sole company remaining in the Guyana oil field exploration.
"We plan to dispatch most of Hess's oil exploration personnel to Guyana. Naturally, decisions will be coordinated with ExxonMobil."
"If Hess helps, it will be like rain during a drought. But sending just a few personnel isn't enough."
Oil exploration was a kind of gamble.
To gamble, you needed a huge stake.
Astronomical amounts of money were required to start exploration, and for ten years, many oil companies paid the stake only to withdraw without any gains.
"We plan to keep investing in exploration until we succeed in finding oil. We won't let a lack of funds stop the exploration."
"That's very reassuring. But are you really okay with the short-selling?"
When short-selling was brought up, I cleared my throat awkwardly.
ExxonMobil's vice chairman worrying about Taewoo Group.
When the oil war began, Taewoo Securities had conducted many short-selling attacks on oil companies, including ExxonMobil.
Of course, Taewoo Securities did not lead these attacks directly.
They hid their involvement through the fintech bank, so it was not known that Taewoo Group was conducting short-selling.
"That's fine. No matter what the short-sellers do, as long as we firmly hold our shares, it won't be a major problem."
"I hope the short-selling issue is resolved well—not just for Taewoo Group, but for the American oil industry."
It was clear the oil industry was struggling.
Such words coming from the ExxonMobil vice chairman reflected that.
But thinking this was the bottom was a mistake.
In a few years, an even worse basement awaited.
Of course, oil prices were expected to rise in the first half of this year.
To land a blow against the short-sellers, ExxonMobil's help was necessary.
"If oil fields are found in Guyana, wouldn't that solve all the problems?"
"There's no better good news than that. We must put more effort into the oil exploration to crush the short-sellers!"
"Not only Hess, but Taewoo Group will spare no support. If necessary, we will even dispatch personnel from Taewoo Construction."
These were no empty words.
Finding the oil field was that important.
It was essential not only to beat the short-sellers but also to secure future revenue sources for Taewoo Group.