U.S. supermajor Chevron Corp. said Monday it was departing from the Asian geothermal sector with the regional sale or planned sales of its subsidiaries.
For an undisclosed sum, the company said it sold off its geothermal business in Indonesia to a Chinese consortium. The conclusion of the sale of its geothermal business unit in the Philippines is expected later this year.
The U.S. company said the transaction was in line with plans to dispose of non-strategic assets. Figures from the sale in Indonesia will show up in Chevron's first-quarter results.
Chevron will be among the first supermajors to report first-quarter results later this year. Fourth-quarter results revealed the company posted its first annual loss in decades as the low price of crude oil, by relative terms, forced energy companies to reconfigure their strategies. At the time, Chevron Chairman John Watson said the company was responding to market dynamics with aggressive cost-cutting measures.
Chevron's exist from Indonesia is significant as the country has about 40 percent of the world's total geothermal resources. The International Energy Agency said it expects the global footprint for geothermal energy to rise from just under 1 gigawatt in 2014 to move than 16 GW by 2020.
French energy company ENGIE started the year by making a debut in geothermal energy with a commitment to help build a power plant in the country. ENGIE said it has the drilling and other subterranean experience necessary to help build a facility that at 80 megawatts, will have the capacity to power 120,000 average homes.
The plant is backed by a $440 million finance agreement coordinated in part by the Asian Development Bank and other regional lenders.
Pressure building ahead of Keystone XL review
Protests are coordinated around the Nebraska review of the planned Keystone XL oil pipeline, days before the developer's annual meeting, organizers said.
Bold Nebraska called on opponents of the project to hold grassroots events ahead of the May 3 public meeting for the Nebraska Public Service Commission.
"To gear up for the upcoming public hearings and meetings, we're launching … read more
