Chevron Corp. said quarterly profit dropped
to the lowest in half a decade as collapsing global crude
markets spurred billions of dollars in oil-industry spending
cuts.
The second-biggest U.S. energy company by market value said
its capital spending budget would be $35 billion this year, 13
percent less than 2014.
Net income in the fourth quarter fell to $3.47 billion, or $1.85 a share, from $4.93 billion, or $2.57, a year earlier, the San Ramon, California-based company said in a statement Friday.
Chevron had been expected to post per-share results of $1.64, based on the average of 20 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Watson said in an
interview last autumn that he’ll look beyond current price
declines when assessing the profit potential of future energy
projects.
Analysts expected the company to reduce project spending by 15 percent this year to $33.88 billion, according to the average of 12 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.
Chevron has expanded investments in deep-sea oil fields as crude prices fell almost 60 percent since June.
In December, Chevron inaugurated production from the Jack/St. Malo deep-sea development in the Gulf of Mexico, a $7.5 billion venture that is expected to pump oil and natural gas for four decades.
Earlier this week, the company agreed to take control and buy stakes in two Gulf discoveries and a nearby exploration prospect from BP Plc for an undisclosed price.
Watson has said he wants to boost Chevron’s worldwide output by more than 20 percent by the end of 2017. The company has slated about $150 billion in new oil and gas installations both on land and at sea to meet that goal.
Brent crude, the benchmark for most of the world’s oil, fell 30 percent to an average of $77.07 a barrel during the final three months of 2014. The year-earlier average was $109.35.
U.S. natural gas averaged $3.83 per million British thermal units during the quarter, little changed from the $3.85 average of the year-earlier period.
Chevron fell 0.7 percent to $103.00 in New York yesterday.
Net income in the fourth quarter fell to $3.47 billion, or $1.85 a share, from $4.93 billion, or $2.57, a year earlier, the San Ramon, California-based company said in a statement Friday.
Chevron had been expected to post per-share results of $1.64, based on the average of 20 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
Analysts expected the company to reduce project spending by 15 percent this year to $33.88 billion, according to the average of 12 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.
Chevron has expanded investments in deep-sea oil fields as crude prices fell almost 60 percent since June.
In December, Chevron inaugurated production from the Jack/St. Malo deep-sea development in the Gulf of Mexico, a $7.5 billion venture that is expected to pump oil and natural gas for four decades.
Earlier this week, the company agreed to take control and buy stakes in two Gulf discoveries and a nearby exploration prospect from BP Plc for an undisclosed price.
Watson has said he wants to boost Chevron’s worldwide output by more than 20 percent by the end of 2017. The company has slated about $150 billion in new oil and gas installations both on land and at sea to meet that goal.
Brent crude, the benchmark for most of the world’s oil, fell 30 percent to an average of $77.07 a barrel during the final three months of 2014. The year-earlier average was $109.35.
U.S. natural gas averaged $3.83 per million British thermal units during the quarter, little changed from the $3.85 average of the year-earlier period.
Chevron fell 0.7 percent to $103.00 in New York yesterday.
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