M&A move

Houston-headquartered Chevron subsidiary acquires majority stake in ongoing hydrogen project

Chevron New Energies now owns a majority share of the Advanced Clean Energy Storage project in Delta, Utah. Photo via Getty Images

The Houston-based clean energy subsidiary of Chevron is making a big splash in the clean hydrogen sector. It just acquired a majority stake in what’s being promoted as the world’s largest facility for clean hydrogen storage.

Chevron New Energies bought Salt Lake City-based Magnum Development from Houston-based private equity firm Haddington Ventures. As a result, the New Energies unit now owns a majority share of the Advanced Clean Energy Storage (ACES) project in Delta, Utah. A joint venture of Magnum Development and Mitsubishi Power Americas is developing ACES. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

“Having been the primary financial sponsor behind this key energy hub since 2008, we believe this transaction will accelerate lower-carbon-intensity solutions that reduce emissions in the western United States,” says John Strom, managing director of Haddington Ventures.

ACES plans to use electrolysis to convert renewable energy into hydrogen and store the energy in salt caverns. The first phase, designed to convert and store up to 100 metric tons of hydrogen per day, is under construction and expected to begin commercial-scale operations in mid-2025.

“Using salt caverns for seasonal energy storage is a significant opportunity to empower hydrogen as an energy carrier and greatly expand energy storage resources throughout the U.S.,” says ACES contractor WSP, an engineering, environmental and professional services consulting firm.

The hydrogen facility will support Intermountain Power Plant, a Utah power plant operated by the municipal utility in Los Angeles. The stored hydrogen is expected to fuel a hybrid 840-megawatt combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant that’ll replace an 1,800-megawatt, coal-fired power plant.

A CCGT plant harnesses exhaust heat from natural gas turbines to generate steam through a heat recovery steam generator, according to IPIECA, an oil and gas association that focuses on environmental and social issues. The steam is then fed to a steam turbine to supply additional power.

Michael Ducker, senior vice president of hydrogen infrastructure at Mitsubishi Power, says the ACES project “will serve as a blueprint for future hydrogen opportunities.”

“We seek to leverage the unique strengths of each partner to develop a large-scale, hydrogen platform that provides affordable, reliable, ever-cleaner energy and helps our customers achieve their lower carbon goals,” says Austin Knight, vice president of hydrogen at Chevron New Energies.

Chevron New Energies is marketing its low-carbon hydrogen offering to sectors like transportation, power, and industrial. These sectors face especially big hurdles in their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In June 2022, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued a $504.4 million loan guarantee to finance ACES. The facility will combine 220 megawatts of alkaline electrolysis with two 4.5 million-barrel salt caverns for storage of clean hydrogen.

ACES expects to create up to 400 construction jobs and 25 permanent jobs.

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A View From HETI

Oxy CEO Vicki Hollub (center) is the first woman to win WPC Energy's Dewhurst Award. Photo via 1pointfive.com

Vicki Hollub, president and CEO of Houston-based Occidental (Oxy), has become the first woman to win WPC Energy’s prestigious Dewhurst Award.

Hollub is the thirteenth recipient of the award, which is considered the highest honor from WPC Energy, a global, non-advocacy, non-political nonprofit organization that promotes the sustainable management of energy and energy products. She is just the fourth U.S. winner since the award launched in 1991. Other U.S. winners include former ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson; Daniel Yergin, vice chairman of S&P Global and chairman of CERAWeek; and former chairman and CEO of Chevron Kenneth Derr.

According to WPC Energy, the Dewhurst Award is given to “exceptional individuals whose leadership and contributions have had a lasting impact on the global energy industry.” It is named after Thomas Dewhurst, who organised the first WPC Energy Congress, formerly the World Petroleum Congress, in 1933.

Oxy works to advance low-carbon technologies, reduce emissions and is leading a number of energy transition projects. Its Oxy Innovation Center is housed in Houston’s The Ion.

Hollub has held a variety of roles in her 40-year career with Occidental, including chief operating officer and senior executive vice president. She also led strategic acquisitions for Occidental of Anadarko Petroleum in 2019 and CrownRock in 2024, and serves on the boards of Lockheed Martin and the American Petroleum Institute. She is one of the first women to lead a major U.S. oil and gas company.

“Vicki Hollub’s visionary leadership and unwavering dedication to innovation and sustainability have set a benchmark for excellence in our industry,” Pedro Miras, WPC Energy President, said in a news release. “She embodies the spirit of the Dewhurst Award—forward-looking, courageous and deeply committed to advancing the global energy dialogue. Her contributions continue to inspire the next generation of energy leaders.”

Hollub will receive the award in April 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia at the 25th WPC Energy Congress, where she will also present the Dewhurst Lecture.

“I am honored to be selected for the Dewhurst Award and appreciate WPC Energy recognizing our company’s achievements,” Hollub added in the release. “The Dewhurst Award reflects the collective efforts of the talented and dedicated team at Oxy, whose commitment to innovation, operational and technical excellence, and sustainability drives our success.”

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