Several oil majors have announced further cuts in oil production and capital expenditures. Chevron has decided to reduce its 2020 investment plan by an additional US$2bn to US$14bn and its 2020 operating costs by more than US$1bn. In March 2020, the group had already announced a 20% cut in its US$20bn investment plan, including a US$2bn cut in upstream unconventionals (mainly in the Permian Basin, where production should be reduced by 125,000 bbl/d, down from a 600,000 bbl/d target), a US$700m cut in upstream projects and exploration, a US$500m cut in upstream-base business in the United States and worldwide, and a US$800m cut in downstream, chemicals and other activities. Chevron had also announced the suspension of its US$5bn annual share repurchase programme, after repurchasing US$1.75bn in the first quarter of 2020.
ConocoPhillips, which had announced a 35% (US$2.3bn) cut in its 2020 investment plan, a 10% (US$0.6bn) cut in operating costs and the suspension of its share repurchase programme in April 2020, plans to slash production by 40,000 bbl/d in May 2020 and by 460,000 bbl/d in June 2020, including a 100,000 bbl/d in Alaska (United States). Earlier in April 2020, ConocoPhillips had decided to reduce its crude oil production by 225,000 bbl/d as of May 2020, including 100,000 bbl/d at its Surmont oil sand facility in western Canada and 125,000 bbl/d across 48 US States.
ExxonMobil intends to reduce its oil and gas upstream production by 400,000 boe/d in the second quarter of 2020 (-10%), including a 100,000 boe/d cut in the Permian Basin. Earlier in April 2020, the group reduced its 2020 investment plans by 30% from US$33bn to US$23bn. Most of the capital expenditure cut will be located in the Permian Basin in western Texas and in the south-eastern New Mexico (United States). In addition, ExxonMobil postponed by 6 to 12 months its project in Guyana, delaying its target for producing 750,000 bbl/d from 2025 to 2026.
Total, which had already decided to reduce its capital expenditure by more than US$3bn (-20%), from US$18bn to less than US$15bn and its operating costs by US$800m in 2020, will strengthen its action plan by an additional US$1bn cut in capital expenditure (down to US$14bn), a US$1bn operating cost reduction target and expected US$1bn savings on energy costs. The group will also cut its hydrocarbon production target by 5% to 2.95 Mboe/d-3 Mboe/d. Plans to achieve a US$2bn share buyback in 2020 have been suspended (US$550m repurchased in the first two months of 2020).