Chevron Corporation will grow its daily production to 3.1 million barrels of oil-equivalent per day by 2017, reflecting an increase of 20 per cent from that of last year.
The company is also focusing on building its crude oil and natural gas legacy assets, a plan that needs $39.8 billion of investment in the year.
Chevron Corporation’s Vice Chairman George Kirkland, made this known at its Annual Meeting of Stockholders in Midland, Texas, United States, where he provided an overview of the company’s 2013 operational and social performance and future growth.
He said the oil giant is on track to grow production to 3.1 million barrels of oil-equivalent per day by 2017, up 20 per cent from 2013, with more growth expected through the end of the decade.
Kirkland said: “To reach this goal, the company has more than 70 projects, each with a Chevron share of more than $250 million, scheduled to start-up by the end of this decade.
“In Australia, the Gorgon project continues to make steady progress toward first liquefied natural gas (LNG), and is 80 percent complete with start-up expected in mid-2015. Wheatstone is now almost 35 percent complete and remains on schedule for a start-up in 2016 as well as Chevron’s profitable growth plans, which focus on building legacy assets associated with crude oil and natural gas.
“These plans include investing $39.8 billion in 2014, which represents a $2 billion reduction from 2013 spending.”
However, the company didn’t say how these plans and investments will affect its operations in Nigeria.
Chairman of the board/ Chief Executive Officer, Chevron Corporation, John Watson, said: “Chevron’s 2013 results demonstrate that we remain well positioned to grow profitably and continue to deliver superior stockholder value. We continue to advance key development projects, which underpin our planned growth strategy and capacity to deliver affordable energy to world markets, a cornerstone of economic prosperity.”
He stressed the company’s 2013 financial and operational performance, highlighting earnings of $21.4 billion and return on capital employed (ROCE) of 13.5 per cent. Last year, the company marked its 26th consecutive year of annual dividend payment increases, which included last year’s dividend increase of 11.1 per cent. Chevron announced another quarterly dividend increase of seven percent in April, this year. Watson also said Chevron led its peer group in total stockholder return for the five-year period ending December 31, last year.
Watson reiterated Chevron’s long-standing dedication to safe, reliable operations. Reinforcing the company’s commitment to process safety, he noted that Chevron’s goal remains zero incidents and ensuring that everyone goes home safely, every day. Watson also discussed the partnerships Chevron has formed to address health, education and economic development in the communities where the company operates. Over the past eight years, Chevron has made nearly $1.5 billion in social investments to local communities, he added.
Last year, Chevron maintained an industry leading earnings per barrel average, which was nearly five dollars per barrel higher than the company’s peer group over the past three years. It has had the highest ROCE in the upstream sector since 2011, with an industry leading 17.2 per cent in 2013.
(NATION)
