media statement Chevron Australia reaffirms its long-term commitment to Australia

Perth, Western Australia, 12 October 2017 – Chevron Australia reaffirmed its long-term commitment to its Australian natural gas business today, following a decision to discontinue the Great Australian Bight exploration program.

While the Great Australian Bight is one of Australia’s most prospective frontier hydrocarbon regions, in the current low oil price environment it was not able to compete for capital in Chevron’s global portfolio.

Chevron Australia Managing Director Nigel Hearne said, “We appreciate the strong support from governments, regulators and the local community for our plans to explore for hydrocarbons offshore South Australia. We are confident the Great Australian Bight can be developed safely and responsibly and we will work closely with the interested stakeholders to help realise its potential.”

This is a commercial decision and was not due to government policy, regulatory, community or environmental concerns.

Hearne added, “Offshore Western Australia is a global focus area for Chevron where we have access to vast natural gas resources and existing infrastructure.

“We have invested billions of dollars in Western Australia to commercialise our large gas resource base through the Chevron-operated Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG and domestic gas facilities and expect to be here for decades to come. Through greater collaboration with other producers in WA, Chevron is also pursuing opportunities to accelerate the commercialisation of our gas resource base through non-operated LNG facilities,” said Hearne.

Chevron Australia’s affiliate was recently awarded three new exploration blocks in the Northern Carnarvon Basin adding to its significant gas position as the largest resource holder and liquefaction owner.

Fast Facts

Chevron is the largest resource holder in Australia with around 50 trillion cubic feet of gas resources*.
Chevron has made more than 25 new discoveries offshore Western Australia since 2009.
Once the Chevron-operated Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG projects are fully operational, Chevron will be Australia's largest liquefaction owner with 15.8 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).
Chevron’s investment in Gorgon and Wheatstone Projects in Western Australia has already resulted in more than $60 billion being spent on Australian goods and services and created 19,000 direct jobs during construction.
The Gorgon Project is the largest single development in Australia’s history with 15.6 MTPA of liquefaction capacity.
The Wheatstone Project is Australia’s first third-party natural gas hub with 8.9 MTPA of capacity enabling future development of the vast natural gas resources offshore Western Australia.
Chevron is an equal one sixth foundation participant in the North West Shelf Venture.
Chevron now operates 53,263 km2 in the Northern Carnarvon Basin including exploration, retention and production permits.
Chevron Australia’s affiliates acquired two deepwater exploration blocks in the Great Australian Bight Basin in October 2013. The acreage spans more than 32,000 square kms. Chevron Australia’s affiliate is operator with 100 percent interest.

* 2016 net unrisked resource as defined in the Chevron Supplement to the Annual Report. **ACIL Allen third-party economic analysis.

Chevron is one of the world's leading integrated energy companies and through its Australian subsidiaries, has been present in Australia for more than 60 years. With the ingenuity and commitment of thousands of workers, Chevron Australia operates the Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG and domestic gas projects; manages its equal one-sixth interest in the North West Shelf Venture; operates Australia’s largest onshore oilfield on Barrow Island; and is a significant investor in exploration.

NOTICE

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT RELEVANT TO FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSE OF “SAFE HARBOR” PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to Chevron’s operations that are based on management’s current expectations, estimates and projections about the petroleum, chemicals and other energy-related industries. Words or phrases such as “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “targets,” “forecasts,” “projects,” “believes,” “seeks,” “schedules,” “estimates,” “positions,” “pursues,” “may,” “could,” “should,” “budgets,” “outlook,” “focus,” “on schedule,” “on track,” “goals,” “objectives,” “strategies” and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the company’s control and are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such forward-looking statements. The reader should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this 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.

Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are: changing crude oil and natural gas prices; changing refining, marketing and chemicals margins; the company's ability to realize anticipated cost savings and expenditure reductions; actions of competitors or regulators; timing of exploration expenses; timing of crude oil liftings; the competitiveness of alternate-energy sources or product substitutes; technological developments; the results of operations and financial condition of the company's suppliers, vendors, partners and equity affiliates, particularly during extended periods of low prices for crude oil and natural gas; the inability or failure of the company’s joint-venture partners to fund their share of operations and development activities; the potential failure to achieve expected net production from existing and future crude oil and natural gas development projects; potential delays in the development, construction or start-up of planned projects; the potential disruption or interruption of the company’s operations due to war, accidents, political events, civil unrest, severe weather, cyber threats and terrorist acts, crude oil production quotas or other actions that might be imposed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or other natural or human causes beyond its control; changing economic, regulatory and political environments in the various countries in which the company operates; general domestic and international economic and political conditions; the potential liability for remedial actions or assessments under existing or future environmental regulations and litigation; significant operational, investment or product changes required by existing or future environmental statutes and regulations, including international agreements and national or regional legislation and regulatory measures to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions; the potential liability resulting from other pending or future litigation; the company’s future acquisition or disposition of assets or shares or the delay or failure of such transactions to close based on required closing conditions; the potential for gains and losses from asset dispositions or impairments; government-mandated sales, divestitures, recapitalizations, industry-specific taxes, changes in fiscal terms or restrictions on scope of company operations; foreign currency movements compared with the U.S. dollar; material reductions in corporate liquidity and access to debt markets; the effects of changed accounting rules under generally accepted accounting principles promulgated by rule-setting bodies; the company's ability to identify and mitigate the risks and hazards inherent in operating in the global energy industry; and the factors set forth under the heading “Risk Factors” on pages 20 through 22 of Chevron’s 2016 Annual Report on Form 10-K. Other unpredictable or unknown factors not discussed in this press release could also have material adverse effects on forward-looking statements.