Chevron Acquires Interest in Three Deepwater Exploration Blocks in China

Published on Tuesday, 07 September 2010 09:19 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

SAN RAMON, Calif.-( Business Wire )-

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) announced today that its China subsidiary has received final approval to acquire operating interests in three exploration blocks in the South China Sea’s Pearl River Mouth Basin.

Chevron has acquired a 100 percent interest in blocks 53-30 and 64-18, and a 59.18 percent interest in block 42-05, from Devon subsidiary Devon Energy China, Ltd. The blocks cover an exploratory acreage of approximately 8,100 square miles (21,000 square km). Chevron will be operator during the exploration phase under the amendment agreements to the production sharing contract with China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).

“Participating in the exploration of this prospective deepwater basin furthers our strategy to grow our business in China and the Asia Pacific region,” said Chevron Vice Chairman George Kirkland.

Jim Blackwell, president, Chevron Asia Pacific Exploration and Production, said, “We welcome the opportunity to partner with CNOOC and apply our industry-leading drilling technology, expertise, and safety practices to explore the South China Sea’s deepwater areas.”

BP will acquire the remaining interest in block 42-05.

Chevron has a presence in China that dates back nearly 100 years. The company is a partner with CNOOC in producing assets in the Bohai Bay and in the South China Sea. Chevron is also a partner with China National Petroleum Corporation in an onshore gas development in the Sichuan Province.

Chevron is one of the world’s leading integrated energy companies, with subsidiaries that conduct business worldwide. The company’s success is driven by the ingenuity and commitment of its employees and their application of the most innovative technologies in the world. Chevron is involved in virtually every facet of the energy industry. The company explores for, produces and transports crude oil and natural gas; refines, markets and distributes transportation fuels and other energy products; manufactures and sells petrochemical products; generates power and produces geothermal energy; provides energy efficiency solutions; and develops the energy resources of the future, including biofuels. Chevron is based in San Ramon, Calif. More information about Chevron is available at www.chevron.com.

Cautionary Statement Relevant to Forward-Looking Information for the Purpose of "Safe Harbor" Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Some of the items discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements about Chevron's activities in China. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "targets," "projects," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "budgets" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. The statements are based upon management's current expectations, estimates and projections; are not guarantees of future performance; and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond the company's control and are difficult to predict. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are changes in prices of, demand for and supply of crude oil and natural gas; actions of competitors; timely completion of the development of fields; the potential disruption or interruption of production and development activities due to war, accidents, political events, civil unrest, or severe weather; government-mandated sales, divestitures, recapitalizations and changes in fiscal terms or restrictions on scope of company operations; and general economic and political conditions. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Unless legally required, Chevron undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Chevron CorporationGareth Johnstone, +65 9728 8375