ChevronTexaco enters international LNG market

ChevronTexaco said May 21 that it has formed a global natural gas business, making it the latest major oil company to pursue a larger role in the production and shipment of liquefied natural gas from remote locations to industrialized markets, such as North America, where demand for gas is growing and large-volume LNG imports are expected to be part of the future supply equation.

In the past year ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil and Marathon Oil have identified LNG as an important component of their growth strategies.

ChevronTexaco Global Gas will be headed by John D. Gass, 51, currently the managing director of ChevronTexaco's Southern Africa business unit in Luanda, Angola, where he has been responsible for development of the Angola LNG project with partner Sonangol.

The new company will also play a key role in ChevronTexaco's plans to commercialize its existing natural gas resource base and oversee ChevronTexaco's shipping company, pipeline operations, and involvement in the Sasol Chevron gas-to-liquids joint venture.