Rising costs test Chevron's patience levels at Tengiz

Chevron is facing a significant uptick in spending at Kazakhstan’s Tengiz oilfield, challenging its renewed commitment to capital discipline

Chevron—leader of the consortium developing the future growth project and wellhead pressure management project (FGP/WPMP) at the Tengiz field—warned in November that cost overruns would increase capex costs by 25pc to an eye-watering $45.2bn.  The firm cites as costs drivers a one-year delay and higher construction and equipment costs. Higher material requirements than originally envisaged is blamed for more than half of the increase in construction costs.  Having shed a number of high-profile assets in recent months—including selling its minority stake in neighbouring Azerbaijan’s Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (ACG) oilfield to Hungary’s Mol—the prospect of fresh spending commitments at Tengiz is t