Chevron to Sell Three Exploration Stakes Offshore Tasmania

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Dow Jones Newswires

U.S. oil and gas major Chevron Corp. said Thursday it is looking to sell stakes in three exploration permits off the coast of the Australian island state of Tasmania.

The permits, in the Sorell Basin to the state's northwest, are operated by Santos Ltd. and the stakes were acquired when San Ramon, Calif.-based Chevron took over Unocal in 2005, Chevron said in a document outlining the sale that was released in an industry email newsletter.

"Chevron's focus in Australia is offshore northwestern Australia, where we are planning to invest billions of dollars to commercialize our significant gas holdings for the domestic and international energy market," a Perth-based Chevron spokesman said in an email.

The three permits are called T/36P, of which Chevron and Santos both have a 50% stake, and T/32P and T/35P, of which Chevron and Santos each own 37.5% and in which Japan's Mitsui & Co. owns 25%.

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