The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship? Exxon, Chevron Now Partners in Guyana

ExxonMobil will now have a new, very familiar partner in its massive project in the deepwaters off the coast of tiny South American nation Guyana after Chevron emerged the winner in a 16-month-long arbitration case on Friday.

Chevron, like ExxonMobil one of the legendary “seven sisters” companies created following the 1911 breakup of the Standard Oil monopoly, announced a $53 billion takeover of U.S. independent producer Hess Corp. in October 2023. Chevron was initially confident the deal would have little trouble gaining necessary approvals from the SEC and other regulators, but ExxonMobil had other ideas.

Exxon, a 45 percent owner and operator of the three-company consortium which has developed the prolific Stabroek Block and other areas offshore Guyana over the last decade, filed a challenge to the arrangement in March 2024. While Hess has other significant assets, including a major position in the Bakken Shale of North Dakota, its 30% stake in the Guyana development is widely considered the key prize for Chevron in the acquisition.