With the official notice from Chevron, one of the largest oil companies in the worldwhich is moving its headquarters to Houston, this city will now be home to 45 of the 113 publicly traded oil and gas exploration and production companies in the country, including nine of the top 25 by asset classification.
There are also seven other companies in the top 25 that have established subsidiaries, major divisions or other significant operations in Houston, including ExxonMobil, Hess, and now Chevron.
Globally, Chevron is the second-largest oil company in terms of revenue, behind only ExxonMobil, another Standard Oil offspring.
Chevron operates in more than 180 countries around the world and is among the “supermajors” – oil and gas companies with no government involvement. In the United States alone, it employs 46,900 people and will have sales of $200 billion in 2023.
The oil company said it will officially close its San Ramon, California, headquarters before the end of the year. Chevron is seeking a more relaxed and business-friendly regulatory environment, a move that has led other companies to make similar moves.
But the move comes after California sued Chevron and other oil companies to force them to downplay the effects of climate change amid growing environmental concerns in the state and around the world.
The move will allow for better collaboration between executives and employees at Chevron, which already has about 7,000 workers in the Houston area. All corporate functions are expected to move to the Texas city within the next five years.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott celebrated the move at X, calling Texas Chevron’s “true home.” The state, which produced more than 42 percent of the nation’s oil last year, has seen a surge in crude production even with tighter federal environmental regulations.
The United States was once again the world’s leading oil producer in 2023. The country of the stars and stripes was followed in the ranking by Saudi Arabia and Russia, which were respectively in second and third position, both with more than eleven million barrels per day.
In the 80s, Houston experienced a boom with large construction projects and the global oil boom, The Transco Tower – now the Williams Tower – was built, and the city became the Oil Capital of the world. However, the fall in oil prices in 1986 caused a recession that severely affected the city’s economy.
