How will Chevron maintain its engineering capabilities if the Company has large numbers of experienced people retiring and others being laid off? Cash flow for the company is strongly dependent on facility reliability, but it seems that the current management thinks everything can be outsourced and plants will run without having technical expertise in-house. How does Chevron stay in business with this mentality?
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-2msq, You do whatever the vendors tell you? Wow. So, I take it, you are not your own man and get pushed around a lot. It's not surprising that technology is passing YOU up, but speak for yourself. It's no wonder that you are on the layoffs site.
2jpt is spot on. Technology changes too fast for CVX to keep up. Thus we do whatever the vendors tell us, not thinking they may have ulterior motives. Go figure.
Chevron engineering capability: folks, wake up. We lost that about 10 years ago or more when we decided our FE's were to be Project Managers instead of engineers. Our Project results show how well that has worked. Our only chance to turn it around is to get back to the basics. Let the engineers do engineer work.
@rrd, you are correct, and I sense a disaster is coming for CVX. Chevron will inevitably realize the need to reduce the dividend. It's been stubbornly waiting for a turnaround which won't come soon enough, selling its assets at fire sale prices, and ridding themselves of valuable employees (what they used to call their most valuable asset). The months have been stretching into years and the company is wearing itself thin real fast. Yes, the earnings call on July 29 will be interesting. I hope the analyst's questions become more probing. Either way, I sense bad times coming. When JW and the BOD are forced to declare a reduction to the dividend, don't be holding CVX stock in your 401k. Best be in the Vanguard Money Market Fund, ready to buy CVX on the deep dip that will come after the announcement. After a quick reciprocal bounce of the stock price, take your profit and put it elsewhere. In my opinion, CVX will become the blue chip stock of choice again, but only after it takes a hit following the needed correction to its dividend.
It should be about revenue production. Stupidly implemented cost reduction reduces revenue and ability to pay dividends. If Gorgon, Wheatstone, Angola and Big Foot do not start generating revenue soon, all the cost cutting in the world will not save the dividend. CVX needs to be much smarter in its cost cutting. Just cutting a key key people can have dramatic consequences. Note that Exxon and Total are not undertaking mass layoffs. Their dividend is safe and they are pursuing growth opportunities.
Ok, one more time if you have forgotten. JW stated last year that maintaining the stock dividend is the number one priority. He has repeated this many times since then. It will be repeated again during the earnings call on July 29. This should put everything in its proper perspective. It is all about cost cutting. I have been in this business long enough and have seen this before. For the rest of you 'newbies', welcome to the cold, heartless world. I do feel your pain.
About 120 days since first Gorgon cargo. A lot longer than the original 30 to 60 days announced in early April. Quarterly earnings meeting should be interesting, because several Wall Street analysts no longer believe management outlook on Angola, Gorgon and Wheatstone revenue and cost projections. CVX management losing credibility rapidly with failure to deliver on promises. CVX stock bounce only because of oil price not management skill and competence.
CVX is in damage control mode. Selling assets and cutting its good people to save as much money as possible. The appalling thing is that Chevron can't even negotiate a good price for the assets it sells. The buyers outsmart us from the beginning. They play us like novices. Right before the close of a transaction, we are s---ered into selling for less. The disposing of our best (and highly paid) professionals to save money today, will turn around to cost us even more later on. The management types who allow this to happen are only interested in self-preservation, not what's best for this company. I sold all my CVX stock back in 2014, but took a little bet on it again when it hit a low of $70 not long ago. But I'm out completely again and don't think I'll bet on it for a long while.
Gorgon start up issues show impact of laying off just a dozen experienced LNG process engineers. 8000 other people on the site do not have LNG process engineering skills to start up and operate safely and reliably. More problems inevitable. Just 7 days of delay on 2 LNG ships siting idle, would have paid for keeping LNG process engineers. CVX is stupid. Wheatstone has even less LNG experience with no ExxonMobil and Shell help. CVX laid off too many of the wrong people.