The redeterminations of lending base are don in order of company size starting with the largest and working to the smallest ... ConocoPhillips is the largest independent.
They were betting the company on the oil price recovering and it didn't. Saudi can keep going for several years ... if that happen's what is the plan? Manage production and decline, sell assets to fund interest and quit drilling all together?
They were a good 4 months late on the blinking. I'm no finance mastermind but clearly saw this as necessary in the second half of last year when it was evident the means being used to finance the dividend and ongoing money losing operations. The only thing done wrong here was waiting as long as they did to do so.
No cash in the bank to pay the dividend. And so cut the dividend. No asset sales or credit facilities to continue to support the dividend.