United States oil giant Chevron Corporation has earmarked $28.5 billion for exploration and production activities, including major natural gas-related projects in Nigeria; Australia; the deepwater Gulf of Mexico; Angola and China.
This figure is part of the $32.7 billion capital and exploratory spending programme for 2012 and included in the programme are $3 billion of planned expenditures by affiliates, which do not require cash outlays by Chevron.
According to the company’s 2012 Planned Capital and Exploratory Expenditures released at the weekend, the planned capital spending is also directed toward improving crude oil and natural gas recovery and reducing natural field declines of existing producing assets throughout the world.
Apart from projects in the United States, the major capital upstream projects in other regions identified in the 2012 programme include the development of the Usan and Agbami deepwater fields, and construction of the Escravos gas-to-liquids facility in Nigeria; the Angola LNG and development of Mafumeira Sul and the development of the Chuandongbei natural gas project in China.
Others include the development of the Papa-Terra deepwater field in Brazil; the Hebron offshore development in Canada; the development of the offshore Clair Ridge project in the United Kingdom and the Caspian Pipeline expansion in Kazakhstan/Russia
Total investments for 2011 are estimated at $33 billion, reflecting approximately $28 billion in capital and exploratory expenditures and $4.5 billion for the acquisition of Atlas Energy, Inc., which closed earlier in the year.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Chevron, Mr. John Watson, said the company would continue to develop an unparalleled project queue.
“Our 2012 capital program covers a number of multi-year projects currently in the construction phase, including two world-class Australian LNG projects and multiple deepwater developments. We believe these investments will yield significant production growth and reward our shareholders for years to come. By 2017, we expect our net crude oil and natural gas production to grow about 20 percent to 3.3 million barrels per day. This growth profile, along with our current financial strength, supports our priority of continuously growing our dividends,” he said.
“Our 2012 capital program includes spending of nearly $9 billion in the United States, with major new investments in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania and our refinery at Pascagoula, Mississippi. These projects are expected to result in new jobs and new sources of revenues for the communities where we operate. Our investments, both in the United States and elsewhere around the globe, help provide affordable new energy supplies to support a growing economy,” he added.
Vice Chairman, Mr. George Kirkland, said the company was building new legacy positions with major investments in LNG projects and the deepwater Gulf of Mexico.
“Our global LNG investments are estimated to reach peak spending in 2012 and 2013. In 2014 we expect to begin reaping the benefits of these investments as Gorgon and our deepwater projects ramp up production and begin contributing substantially to cash flow,” he said.
Global exploration funding is expected to be $3 billion in 2012.
This planned spending includes initial appraisal of new acreage captured over the past two years, including Liberia, China and various international shale gas plays. The programme also supports continued exploration and appraisal activity in Chevron’s focus areas of Western Australia, the Gulf of Mexico and western Africa.
