Chevron Plans To Double Venezuela Output To 600,000 Barrels A Day, With Costs Under $20 A Barrel
Chevron says the Venezuela push will fund itself, with no major new infrastructure, as it targets 2031 for the doubling.
Chevron plans to double output from its three Venezuelan joint ventures to roughly 600,000 barrels a day by 2031, Chairman and CEO Mike Wirth said on the company's third-quarter earnings call on Friday. CFO Eimear Bonner put total cost, capital and operating spending combined, at less than $20 a barrel.
A self-funding doubling
Wirth said the program relies entirely on primary recovery, will fund itself and could run further into the 2030s, backed by billions of barrels of resource. Venezuela is now "immediately accretive and free cash flow positive," he said, helped by new fiscal terms.
Asked by a JPMorgan analyst about cost, Bonner said "total cost less than $20 a barrel," which she described as capital plus operating spending. She called the program "a factory-like operation" that should grow more efficient with time, and said Chevron does not expect major new infrastructure spending as output rises from 300,000 to 600,000 barrels a day through the end of the decade. Wirth said the infrastructure has been well maintained.
Chevron expects gross production of about 300,000 barrels a day by year end, up 20% over 12 months, Wirth said. Third-quarter production of nearly 4 million barrels of oil equivalent a day includes one month from the Venezuela ventures after a switch to equity accounting, Bonner said.
Controlling the oil and the cash
Wirth said Venezuela now differs from past experience. Chevron lifts and markets all the crude itself rather than the state oil company, directs the flow of revenue, taxes and royalties, and is recovering the last of the old loan debt. Most of the oil is to go to U.S. refineries, including Pascagoula and El Segundo.
On above-ground risk, Wirth cited stability clauses and international arbitration provisions "as good as we see anywhere in the world." He said drilling pace can be moved up or down with market conditions.
Quarter and capital plans
Chevron, the integrated energy company that produces, refines and markets oil, gas and fuels, reported third-quarter earnings of $9.9 billion, or $5.06 a share, and adjusted earnings of $10.4 billion, or $5.28 a share. Cash flow from operations excluding working capital was $16.6 billion, and the company cut debt by more than $3 billion.
Bonner said capital allocation is unchanged, including buybacks of $2.5 billion to $3 billion. Bonner also said AI has delivered more than $100 million in value so far this year.
Wirth said Chevron will give more detail on its 2027 capital program in December after meeting with its board, and will update investors on the Kazakhstan concession extension as milestones arrive.
Wirth said more detail on 2027 spending comes in December, after the board meets.
Sources
- Oil earnings Chevron (CVX) and Exxon (XOM) Q3 2026 — CNBC
- Chevron Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Strong Refining Margins — Yahoo Finance
- Chevron Earnings: Integration Supports Continued Strong Earnings; Venezuela Set to Deliver Growth — morningstar.com
- Chevron (CVX) Q3 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates — Yahoo Finance
- ExxonMobil and Chevron top Q3 estimates on higher prices and strong output | AP News — Associated Press
