Chevron Corporation workers are being offered buyouts as the company attempts to reduce its workforce in light of sharply lower oil and gas prices.
It’s what Reuters reports about the No. 2 U.S oil producer. Company sources told the news agency that the company decided to reduce staff after reviewing operations late last year as energy prices fell. Chevron confirmed that it was offering buyouts to workers in its shale gas business in the eastern United States but did not comment on any other U.S. job cuts.
Other oil and gas producers and service companies have begun cutting workers as prices have dived on soaring production and tepid demand, which has been made worse by the coronavirus outbreak.
One of the sources said some employees who accept Chevron’s buyout offer could remain until October. Another source said the company hopes to open spots for people who currently work for its shale gas operation in the Appalachian region of the United States, which is on the auction block.
Chevron notified Pennsylvania state officials last month that it planned to cut up to 320 jobs in the state, which includes the shale gas business.
The company said in a statement it could not yet say how many employees in that business would be affected. “We are taking active steps to reduce job loss,” including moving employees to other operations, a spokeswoman said.
Employees who ultimately lose their jobs will be offered severance pay and outplacement services, the spokeswoman said. The restructuring is part of a business review “toward capturing efficiencies and directing resources where they will generate the most value,” she said.
Chevron overall employed 48,200 workers globally at the end of last year, down 7,000 from three years ago. About 53% of its workers, or 25,400 employees, are in the United States.
Chevron operates crude oil and natural gas fields in the midcontinental United States – primarily in Colorado, New Mexico and Texas. In 2018, the company’s net daily production in these areas averaged 198,000 barrels of crude oil, 651 million cubic feet of natural gas and 77,000 barrels of natural gas liquids (NGLs).
Chevron is among the largest net acreage leaseholders and producers in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico.
Source: Reuters