Chevron confirms it will close Johnston St. office

June 26:


(Photo: Associated Press)

Actions planned by Chevron over the next 18 months will apparently lead to the closing of the company's office at 5750 Johnston St.

Chevron confirmed for The Daily Advertiser on Friday that the company has decided to consolidate its Lafayette and Covington offices by the end of 2016. An issued statement Friday afternoon suggested that the Johnston Street office would close.

About 300 employees and contractors could be affected.

The company said Chevron had "identified actions to help us build a long-term, sustainable and competitive business in the region, including making a significant shift in our portfolio to a primarily deepwater business with fewer, more complex assets." Chevron had previously had significant focus in exploration and production on the continental shelf.

To help accomplish its transition, the company statement said, Chevron's Gulf of Mexico Business Unit would "reduce its footprint and consolidate" the Lafayette and Covington offices. That consolidation would come in phases, the company said, and would be accomplished by the end of next year.

The company said it would retain and continue to operate its Employee Resource Training Center, located at 200 Galbert Road in Lafayette.

"The ERTC remains a centerpiece in Chevron's workforce training and development efforts for the company's operations in the Gulf of Mexico, training hundreds of industry professionals each month," the company said.

"Chevron has operated in the Gulf of Mexico for more than 60 years and remains committed to Lafayette and South Louisiana, specifically the employees, partners and suppliers with whom we have had relationships with for decades," Sakari Morrison, general manager of public affairs for Chevron Gulf of Mexico said in a prepared statement. "With that in mind, Chevron will continue to invest resources and work with our partners here to improve the social, environmental and economic vitality of this region so that we can work here for decades to come."

The company did not immediately respond to a series of follow-up questions from The Daily Advertiser.

Source: http://www.theadvertiser.com/story/money/business/2015/06/26/chevron-confirms-will-close-johnston-st-office/29361425/?