‘Too early’ to say how Chevron staff will be affected by UK exit

Following news that US supermajor Chevron has put its UK assets up for sale, the firm has said it is “too early” to comment on how it will affect up to a dozen workers.

Reports surfaced late last week that the US-listed oil giant would be ending its 55-years in the UK North Sea as it sought a buyer for its non-operated stake in the Clair oilfield among other interests.

Chevron (NYSE: CVX) said: “A portfolio review has been completed and a decision has been taken, to initiate the process of marketing Chevron’s 19.4% non-operated working interest in the Clair Field and associated assets in the UK North Sea.

“This includes various working interests in the Sullom Voe Terminal, the Ninian Pipeline, and the SIRGE Pipeline.”

However, when asked how a sell off will affect headcount in the UK, Chevron said it is too early to say.

“There is a specialist team, of around 12 people, directly supporting Chevron’s interests in Clair and the associated assets in the UK North Sea,” a spokesperson for the firm told Energy Voice.

“It is too early in the process to predict if and how any employees may be impacted.”

The oil firm has said that the sale will not affect operations at the company’s international headquarters in London or its technology centre in Aberdeen.

Chevron previously moved its Aberdeen employees to an office block on the third floor of Marischal Square 2.

The move followed the sale of its UK North Sea business to Ithaca Energy as part of a £1.6bn deal completed in November 2019.

This saw Ithaca take up the lease on Chevron’s former base at Hill of Rubislaw in Aberdeen and retained 450 Chevron employees, including 200 offshore.

A successful sale is not guaranteed for the US supermajor.

Shell’s recent move to offload its stake in the Cambo field, located in the west of Shetland near Clair, ended in the UK supermajor handing over its stake to project partner Ithaca Energy after no buyer was found.

A fresh sales process to find a new buyer for the Shell stake was launched in May 2023, with a clause set out that if no one picked up the share, operator Ithaca would become 100% owner.

In September last year, Ithaca Energy completed its acquisition of Shell’s stake in Cambo.

© Ithaca Energy

The possibility of not finding a firm willing to take on Chevron’s near 20% stake in Clair is something the US firm is all too aware of.

Chevron added: “The process is expected to take multiple months and may or may not result in a sale.”

Unlike Cambo, Clair is a producing field so presents less risk to a potential buyer.

Cambo was once set to reach FID in 2022 but changes to the UK Government windfall tax and the exit of Shell have thrown a spanner in the works.

However, Ithaca Energy said in March that the planned entry of Italian oil major Eni “de-risks” the Cambo oilfield.