High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Occidental Petroleum Corporation (Oxy) is a California-based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations in the United States, the Middle East, North Africa, and South America. "Oxy" is the largest oil producer in Texas and the largest natural gas producer and second-largest producer of oil and gas combined in California, with additional operations in Kansas, North Dakota, Utah, Oklahoma, Colorado and New Mexico. The company nickname began in 1964 in reference to Occidental’s NYSE stock ticker (OXY). Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, Oxy is the fourth-largest U.S. oil and gas company, based on equity market capitalization. As of 2010, the company has more than 30,000 employees and contractors worldwide.