News from around the world

Compiled from PNA staff and AP wire reports

At a May 31 meeting in Dallas, Exxon Mobil Corp. shareholders overwhelmingly rejected proposals to invest in renewable energy, study potential harm from oil drilling in Alaska and prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.

In an upbeat state-of-the-company address to shareholders, ExxonMobil Chairman Lee Raymond said the world’s largest investor-owned oil company will boost production with new projects later this year. One project, a deepwater rig in the Hoover-Diana field of the Gulf of Mexico, started production the morning of May 31, ahead of its mid-year schedule, he announced.

Exxon Mobil posted first-quarter earnings of nearly $3.5 billion, almost double the combined pre-merger figures from Exxon and Mobil a year ago.

Bayer and BP Amoco said May 26 that they have reached a common understanding in principle that Deutsche BP AG will acquire Bayer’s 50 percent shareholding in their petrochemicals joint venture, Erdoelchemie.

On completion of the deal, Erdoelchemie will account for more than 10 percent of BP Amoco Chemicals’ total worldwide petrochemical capacity. The addition of Erdoelchemie’s ethylene production capacity will make BP Amoco Chemicals one of the top three European olefins producers.

BP Amoco said June 7 that it has signed a letter of intent with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corp. to move forward on a two-development gas project on the Mediterranean coast, close to BP Amoco’s gas fields, including a two-train liquefied natural gas project and a two-train natural gas liquids project.

The NGL plant will supply liquefied petroleum gas in Egypt, with first delivery scheduled for 2003. Shipments to Mediterranean markets from the LNG plant will begin in 2004.

Chevron Corp. said June 1 that it is purchasing a portion of PG&E Corp.’s energy services business, PG&E Energy Services, including energy management, energy efficiency, billing and information services, for major commercial, industrial and institutional customers.

“This purchase will help position Chevron to provide total energy solutions for its commercial and industrial customers,” said Patricia Woertz, president of Chevron Products Co.

Phillips Petroleum Co. said June 6 that it plans to increase capacity at its Borger, Texas, refinery through a debottlenecking project scheduled to begin later this year. The project will increase the facility’s capacity to process crude oil by 20,000 barrels per day and move the facility toward production of lower sulfur products in preparation for meeting new sulfur regulations. Start-up is expected in 2002.

Exxon Mobil Corp. said May 25 that two ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre productions received the George Foster Peabody Award at the 59th annual awards ceremony in New York on May 22.

Productions receiving the Peabodys were “Lost for Words,” a story of the great love between an elderly mother and her son; and, “A Rather English Marriage,” a bittersweet tale of two widowed war veterans coming to terms with the death of their wives.

Unocal Corp. said June 6 that Terry Dallas, 49, has been named as the company’s new chief financial officer. Dallas was formerly senior vice president and treasurer with Atlantic Richfield Co.

As CFO, Dallas succeeds Timothy H. Ling, 42, who will now be free to focus on his role as executive vice president for North American Energy Operations and development of e-commerce initiatives for the company. Ling previously held both positions.

The board of BP Amoco p.l.c. said June 13 that it will appoint Dr. Byron Grote an executive director, effective Aug. 3.

Grote, 52, will succeed Bryan Sanderson, 59, as chief executive of BP Amoco Chemicals. Sanderson will leave the board at the end of September 2000, having reached normal retiring age.

Grote, currently an executive vice president, was responsible for managing the and integration of ARCO into the BP Amoco group.