Chevron has been caught in the crossfire of a dispute between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia over management of their shared resources in the Partitioned Neutral Zone (PNZ). The US major says it may not be able to sustain production from the Wafra field at current levels, which are somewhat below the field’s 200,000 b/d capacity, because of difficulties securing work permits and equipment. Failure to resolve the problems might force the company to wind down its operations, a senior Saudi source tells MEES.
Chevron’s four onshore fields in the Neutral Zone, of which Wafra is the largest, are the US company’s only producing asset in the Middle East. Operations have been constrained since the start of 2015, the company says in its freshly-released 2014 annual report. The PNZ accounted for 4.6% of Chevron’s overall liquids production for 2014, down from 4.9% for 2013 (see graph). (CONTINUED - 1350 WORDS)
