Occidental Petroleum will sell its chemicals arm OxyChem to Warren Buffett 's Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7 billion, the company said on Thursday, marking its biggest divestment yet to slash debt after years of costly acquisitions.

Shares of the U.S. oil and gas producer, however, fell more than 6% in morning trading. Roth MKM analysts said in a note the sale of OxyChem could weigh on free cash flow growth in coming years, as the unit was expected to contribute significantly to expansion. Scotiabank analyst Paul Cheng noted that the transaction price seemed low as he had previously estimated the division's value at $12 billion.

OxyChem, which produces chemicals used for treating swimming pools and vinyl products used for water supply piping and medical supplies, generated combined revenu

See Full Page