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Unocal sees 2002 worldwide capital spending at $1.7 billion, says Chairman and CEO Williamson In Alaska the company will redevelop large mature oil and gas fields; production growth will come from seven areas in 2002-2007, including South Kenai gas Kristen Nelson PNA Editor-in-Chief
U nocal Corp. said Jan. 7 that it expects capital expenditures for 2002 of approximately $1.7 billion, essentially unchanged from the estimated expenditures in 2001. The company said the capital-spending estimate does not include major acquisition expenditures for either year.
“We are shifting more of our capital spending emphasis in 2002 to development programs,” Charles Williamson, Unocal chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
“We expect to spend about $250 million, or 15 percent of our plan, on development of new deepwater oil and gas production in Indonesia and the Gulf of Mexico. We also will move forward in Azerbaijan with the phase-one oil development and construction of the main export pipeline.”
Development expenditures of about $1.1 billion for 2002 are up from $900 million for 2001, Williamson said. Unocal’s exploration capital of $400 million is down from $500 million for 2001. The company said its 2002 exploration capital estimate includes spending for delineation of the Trident deepwater Gulf of Mexico discovery and the Ranggas deepwater Indonesian discovery.
Unocal said it will spend about $800 million in 2002 on international projects including continued development of oil and gas in the Gulf of Thailand, the West Seno deepwater oil project in Indonesia’s Makassar Strait and phase one development and main export pipeline for oil fields in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea.
About $100 million of the international budget is earmarked for exploration work, including drilling on deepwater prospects offshore Indonesia and Brazil.
North American capital spending is expected to total about $800 million, including initial development of the deepwater Mad Dog field in the Gulf of Mexico. Planned North American exploration spending is approximately $300 million, including deepwater Gulf of Mexico and Permian Basin.
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