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01/28/2006:

"Chevron's 4Q Profit Soars to Record High"

Chevron Corp.'s fourth-quarter profit climbed 20 percent to $4.14 billion, a company record that continued the most prosperous stretch in the oil company's 126-year history as it capitalizes on high fuel prices that are squeezing consumers and ruffling politicians.

Its profit of $14.1 billion for the full year was also a company record.

The San Ramon, Calif.-based company's earnings for 2005's final quarter, released Friday, represented the most it has made in any three-month period since its inception in 1879. The performance edged the $4.13 billion earned during the second quarter of 2004 _ the early stages of a two-year boom.

Chevron now has posted record annual profits in each of the last two years, earning a combined $27.4 billion.

Oppenheimer & Co. Fadel Gheit believes Chevron will set yet another new earnings record this year as the company continues to mine crude oil prices that are expected to remain above $60 per barrel. "We are only scratching the surface," Gheit said. "In my view, this company is hitting on all cylinders."

The windfalls that Chevron has been generating aren't unique in its industry. Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest publicly traded oil company, earned nearly $10 billion in the third quarter and may top that performance when it releases its fourth quarter results Monday.

...For all of 2005, Chevron's $14.1 billion profit amounted to $6.54 per share, topping its previous highest annual profit of $13.3 billion, or $6.14 per share, established in 2004. Last year's gains partially reflect Chevron's increased size after completing a $17.8 billion takeover of Unocal Corp. in August.

The Unocal acquisition increased Chevron's supply of oil and natural gas, better positioning the company to take advantage of energy prices that have been driven up by steadily rising worldwide demand and Middle East turmoil.

Chevron's profit would have been even higher last year if not for extensive damage to its Gulf of Mexico operations caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita during August and September.

Those devastating storms hobbled a major Mississippi oil refinery, as well as the Chevron's natural gas production, preventing the company from fully cashing in on a sharp run-up in energy prices.

Chevron estimated the decreased production in the Gulf of Mexico lowered its annual profit by about $1.4 billion, with about half the loss occurring during the fourth quarter. Gheit estimated the fourth- quarter production setbacks trimmed Chevron's earnings by about 31 cents per share.

The company has since repaired most of the storm damage, but its production continues to lag below levels before the hurricanes.

Until Katrina struck, Chevron's average oil production in the Gulf of Mexico averaged about 300,000 barrels per day. In fourth quarter, the average fell to about 160,000 barrels per day. This year, Chevron expects to average about 200,000 barrels per day in the Gulf.

Substantially higher prices for oil and natural gas enabled Chevron to overcome its problems in the Gulf of Mexico.
breitbart.com

The more chaos the better. Rock on Chevron.