Chevron enters lithium market with Texas land acquisition

to market

Chevron U.S.A. has acquired 125,000 acres in Northeast Texas and southwest Arkansas that contain a high amount of lithium. Photo via Getty Images.

Chevron U.S.A., a subsidiary of Houston-based energy company Chevron, has taken its first big step toward establishing a commercial-scale lithium business.

Chevron acquired leaseholds totaling about 125,000 acres in Northeast Texas and southwest Arkansas from TerraVolta Resources and East Texas Natural Resources. The acreage contains a high amount of lithium, which Chevron plans to extract from brines produced from the subsurface.

Lithium-ion batteries are used in an array of technologies, such as smartwatches, e-bikes, pacemakers, and batteries for electric vehicles, according to Chevron. The International Energy Agency estimates lithium demand could grow more than 400 percent by 2040.

“This acquisition represents a strategic investment to support energy manufacturing and expand U.S.-based critical mineral supplies,” Jeff Gustavson, president of Chevron New Energies, said in a news release. “Establishing domestic and resilient lithium supply chains is essential not only to maintaining U.S. energy leadership but also to meeting the growing demand from customers.”

Rania Yacoub, corporate business development manager at Chevron New Energies, said that amid heightening demand, lithium is “one of the world’s most sought-after natural resources.”

“Chevron is looking to help meet that demand and drive U.S. energy competitiveness by sourcing lithium domestically,” Yacoub said.

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Ten Rice University energy innovators have been selected for the Chevron Energy Graduate Fellowship. Photo by of Jeff Fitlow/Rice University

Chevron names inaugural cohort of energy transition graduate students at Rice University

ready to innovate

A new program from Rice University and Chevron has named its inaugural cohort.

Funded by Chevron, the Chevron Energy Graduate Fellowship will provide $10,000 each to 10 Rice graduate students for the current academic year, which supports research in energy-related fields.

The Rice Sustainability Institute (RSI) hosted the event to introduce the inaugural cohort of the Rice Chevron Energy Graduate Fellowship at the Ralph S. O’Connor Building for Engineering and Science. Director of the RSI and the W. Maurice Ewing Professor in Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, Carrie Masiello presented each fellow with a certificate during the ceremony.

“This fellowship supports students working on a wide range of topics related to scalable innovations in energy production that will lead to the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions,” Masiello says in a news release. “It’s important that we recognize the importance of intellectual diversity to the kind of problem-solving we have to do as we accomplish the energy transition.”

The work of the students focuses on creating "real-world, scalable solutions to transform the energy landscape,” per the Rice release. Recipients of the fellowship will research solutions to energy challenges that include producing eco-friendly hydrogen alternatives to fossil fuels and recycling lithium-ion batteries.

Some of the fellows' work will focus on renewable fuels and carbon-capture technologies, biological systems to sequester carbon dioxide, and the potential of soil organic carbon sequestration on agricultural land if we remove the additionality constraint. Xi Chen, a doctoral student in materials science and nanoengineering, will use microwave-assisted techniques to recycle lithium-ion batteries sustainably.

Rice President Reginald DesRoches began the event by stressing the importance of collaboration. Ramamoorthy Ramesh, executive vice president for research at Rice, echoed that statement appearing via Zoom to applaud the efforts of doing what is right for the planet and having a partner in Chevron.

“I’m excited to support emerging leaders like you all in this room, who are focused on scalable, innovative solutions because the world needs them,” Chris Powers, vice president of carbon capture, utilization and storage and emerging at Chevron New Energies and a Rice alum, says at the event. “Innovation and collaboration across sectors and borders will be key to unlocking the full potential of lower carbon energies, and it’s groups like you, our newest Chevron Fellows, that can help move the needle when it comes to translating, or evolving, the energy landscape for the future.”

To see a full list of fellows, click here.

In a series of fireside chats, Houston energy leaders took the stage at OTC to discuss what their companies are doing in the energy transition space. Photo via LinkedIn

4 Houston energy execs sound off on future workforce, collaboration, and more at OTC

overheard

In addition to the massive exhibit floor, networking, and panels, the 2024 Offshore Technology Conference hosts thoughtful fireside chats with energy leaders throughout the ongoing conference taking place in Houston this week.

Four energy leaders from Houston took the stage to discuss what their companies are doing within the energy transition. Take a look at what topics each of the conversations tackled.

Chris Powers, vice president of CCUS at Chevron New Energies, on energy evolution and collaboration

Chris Powers introduced Chevron New Energies, an organization within Chevron that launched in 2021, to the crowd at OTC, describing the entity's focus points as CCUS, hydrogen, offsets and emerging technology, and renewable fuels — specifically things Chevron believes it has the competitive advantage.

One of the things Powers made clear in his fireside chat is that it's not going to be one, two, or even three technologies to significantly move the energy transition along, "it's going to take all the solutions to meet all the growing energy needs," he said.

And, he continued, this current energy transition the world is in isn't exactly new.

"We've been evolving our energy supply since the dawn of man," he said. "Our view is that the world has always been in an energy evolution."

"Hydrocarbons will continue to play a huge role in the years to come, and anyone who has a different view on that I think isn't being pragmatic," he continued.

Chevron has played a role in the clean energy market for decades, Powers said, pointing out Chevron Technology Ventures, which launched in the 1990s.

"No one can do this alone," he said, pointing specifically to the ongoing Bayou Bend joint venture that Chevron is working on with Equinor and TotalEnergies. "We have to bring together the right partners and the right skill sets."

Celine Gerson, group director, Americas, and president at Fugro USA, on the importance of data

Celine Gerson set the scene for Fugro, a geo data and surveying company that diversified its business beginning in 2015 to account for the energy transition. From traditional oil and gas to renewables, "it starts with the geo data," she said during her chat. She said big projects can't map out their construction without it, and then, when it comes to maintaining the equipment, the geo data is equally important.

Another message Gerson wanted to convey is that the skill sets from traditional offshore services translate to renewables. Fugro's employee base has evolved significantly over the past few years, and Gerson said that 50 percent of the workforce was hired over the past five years and 85 percent of the leadership has changed in the past seven.

Agility is what the industry needs, Celine Gerson said, adding that the "industry need to move fast and, in order to move fast, we need to look at things differently.

Attilio Pisoni, CTO of oilfield services and equipment at Baker Hughes, on the future workforce

In addition to the world making changes toward sustainability, the energy industry is seeing a workforce evolution as well, Attilio Pisoni said during his fireside chat, adding that inspiring a workforce is key to retention and encouraging innovation.

"We have a challenge in attracting young people," Pisoni said. "To be successful, you have to have a purpose."

That purpose? Combating climate change. And that, Pisoni said, needs to be able to be quantified. "As a society over all, we need to have a standard of measurement and accuracy in reporting," he said.

To future engineers, Pisoni emphasized the importance of learning outside your specific niche.

"Having seen where the world is now, whatever you study, have a concept and understanding of the system as a whole," he said.

Erik Oswald, vice president of advocacy and policy development at ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions, on transferable skills from upstream

When he looks at renewables and new energy, Erik Oswald said he sees a significant similarity for the talent and skill sets required in upstream oil and gas.

"A lot of the same skills are coming into focus" within the energy transition," Oswald said, specifying CCS and upstream.

Even in light of the transferrable workforce, the industry faces needs to grow its workforce in a significant way to keep up with demand — and keeping in mind the younger generations coming onto the scene.

"We're talking about recreating the entire oil and gas industry," Oswald said on preparing the workforce for the future of the energy industry. "We have to do it, it's not an option."

Boulder, Colorado-based ION Clean Energy announces it has raised $45 million in financing. Photo via Getty Images

Chevron backs carbon capture tech company in $45M investment round

fresh funding

Chevron New Energies has a new cleantech company in its portfolio.

Boulder, Colorado-based ION Clean Energy announces it has raised $45 million in financing. The round was led by Chevron New Energies with participation from New York-based Carbon Direct Capital. Founded in 2008, ION's carbon dioxide capture technologies lower costs and make CO2 capture a more viable option for hard-to-abate emissions.

“We have truly special solvent technology. It is capable of very high capture efficiency with low energy use while simultaneously being exceptionally resistant to degradation with virtually undetectable emissions. That’s a pretty powerful combination that sets us apart from the competition. The investments from Chevron and Carbon Direct Capital are a huge testament to the hard work of our team and the potential of our technology,” ION founder and Executive Chairman Buz Brown says in a news release. “We appreciate their collaboration and with their investments we expect to accelerate commercial deployment of our technology so that we can realize the kind of wide-ranging commercial and environmental impact we’ve long envisioned.”

The funding will go toward ION’s organizational growth and commercial deployment of its ICE-31 liquid amine carbon capture technology.

“We continue to make progress on our goal to deliver the full value chain of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) as a business, and we believe ION is a part of this solution. ION has consistent proof points in technology performance, recognition from the Department of Energy, partnerships with global brands, and a strong book of business that it brings to the relationship,” Chris Powers, vice president of CCUS and emerging with CNE, says in the release. “ION’s solvent technology, combined with Chevron’s assets and capabilities, has the potential to reach numerous emitters and support our ambitions of a lower carbon future. We believe collaborations like this are essential to our efforts to grow carbon capture on a global scale.”

With the new investment, the company announced that Timothy Vail will join the company as CEO. He previously was CEO of Arbor Renewable Gas and founder and CEO of G2X Energy Inc. He also serves as an Operating Partner for OGCI Climate Investments.

"With these investments, we are well positioned to grow ION into a worldwide provider of high-performance point source capture solutions,” Vail says. “This capital allows us to accelerate the commercial deployment of our carbon capture technology.”

Carbon Clean develops carbon capture technology for customers such as cement producers, steelmakers, refineries, and waste-to-energy plants.

Clean tech co. with U.S. HQ selected for UAE carbon capture project

big win

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (ADNOC), the state-owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates, has chosen technology from United Kingdom-based company Carbon Clean for a carbon capture project in Abu Dhabi. Carbon Clean’s U.S. headquarters is in Houston.

Carbon Clean’s modular CycloneCC technology will be used for a carbon capture project at a Fertiglobe nitrogen fertilizer plant. Fertiglobe is a joint venture between ADNOC and OCI Global, a Netherlands-based chemical company.

“This project is hugely significant given it’s the first industrial deployment of our award-winning CycloneCC technology anywhere in the world,” says Aniruddha Sharma, chairman and CEO of Carbon Clean. “We are moving a step closer to achieving full commercialization of this modular solution, which will play a vital role in decarbonizing heavy industries and achieving net-zero targets.”

Carbon Clean develops carbon capture technology for customers such as cement producers, steelmakers, refineries, and waste-to-energy plants. The company bills its offering as the “world’s smallest industrial carbon capture technology.”

CycloneCC can reduce the cost of carbon capture by as much as 50 percent with a footprint that’s 50 percent smaller than traditional carbon capture units, according to Carbon Clean. The startup’s unit arrives ready to install and can be up and running in eight weeks.

The company established its Houston outpost earlier this year.

In 2022, Houston-based Chevron New Energies led the company’s $150 million series C round. Other contributors to the round were CEMEX Ventures, Marubeni, WAVE Equity Partners, AXA IM Alts, Samsung Ventures, Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, and TC Energy. To date, Carbon Clean has raised $195 million.

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

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

M&A move

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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Houston’s Fervo Energy amasses $12B backlog of orders

q3 results

Houston-based geothermal power company Fervo Energy saw a 65 percent spike in purchase orders during the third quarter.

During Fervo’s third-quarter earnings call, Tim Latimer, co-founder, chair, president and CEO, said the company had a $11.9 billion backlog of orders, up from $7.2 billion in the previous quarter.

Those numbers didn’t translate to robust financial results in the third quarter, though. It closed the quarter with an operating loss of $43 million on revenue of just $116,000.

Beyond the billions of dollars in signed purchase agreements, Fervo is in talks with prospective customers in the utility, industrial data-center sectors, Latimer said. About half the potential customers are in the data-center sector, 35 percent in the utility sector and 15 percent in the industrial sector.

Latimer said the broad-based demand reflected by the backlog and the discussions with potential customers reinforces the critical need for reliable, readily available power.

“Our approach to power delivery will continue to blend front-of-the-meter and behind-the-meter development,” he said. “Grid-connected assets remain the foundation, though behind-the-meter gives customers a faster path to power when transmission time lines lag their need.”

Front-of-the-meter refers to power plants, utility-scale solar and wind farms, large grid batteries, and transmission and distribution infrastructure. Behind-the-meter assets sit on the customer side of the meter, such as backup generators and EV chargers at homes, businesses, factories and other everyday places.

The order backlog isn’t Fervo’s only recent milestone. In late September, the company’s Cape Station geothermal plant in Utah started delivering its first utility-scale geothermal power to the grid. The plant is producing about 33 megawatts of power.

Earlier in September, Fervo signed a 15-year deal to supply about 396 megawatts of power for Google data centers. The power will be delivered in four 99-megawatt batches. The company filed its $1.89 billion IPO this spring.

3 Houston incubators supporting hard tech, energy transition, and beyond

Meet The Finalists

It takes a village to launch a business. That's where Houston's network of incubators and accelerators can step in, providing the resources, mentorship and community needed to push a fledgling company forward.

As part of InnovationMap's 2026 Houston Innovation Awards, the Incubator/Accelerator of the Year category honors a local organization that is championing and fueling the growth of Houston startups.

Three incubators and accelerators have been named finalists for the 2026 award. They support startups ranging from hard tech companies to food and youth concepts.

Read more about these organizations below. The 2026 winners will be announced on InnovationMap.com in mid-November.

Activate

Hard tech incubator Activate supports scientists in "the outset of their entrepreneurial journey." The Houston hub was introduced in 2024, and joins others in Boston, New York, and Berkley, California—where Activate is headquartered. It named its third Houston cohort this summer.

The two-year program graduated its first class of Houston fellows in 2026 and saw its first alumni IPO from Houston-based Fervo Energy, which previously participated in a Berkley cohort. Nationally, it has supported 346 fellows and 276 companies since 2015. Those companies have raised more than $6 billion in follow-on funding, according to Activate. In Houston, it has supported Houston startups like energy transition leaders Solidec and FlowCellutions. Activate Houston is led by managing director Jeremy Pitts, who co-founded Greentown Labs in Boston. It is based out of the Ion.

Impact Hub Houston

Impact Hub Houston supports early-stage ventures at various stages of development through innovative programs that address pressing societal issues. The nonprofit organization supports social impact startups through mentorship, connections and training opportunities.

There are more than 110 Impact Hubs globally with members spanning 72 countries. Launched in 2018, Impact Hub Houston says its membership tripled by the beginning of 2026. This year brought major milestones for the community, including the launch of its Ideas to Impact Accelerator, which supported 11 founders across the health, education, food systems, civic technology and workforce development sectors. It also received funding from more than 20 international Impact Hubs to develop SYNC, a collaboration platform that 25 Impact Hubs across five continents have committed to pilot. The organization has worked with local startups including Myoviva Health, The Change Lab and INNERVERSE Inc.

MarMo Innovation

Galveston-based business incubator MarMo Innovation is focused on removing barriers to entrepreneurship. It aims to provide affordable space, education, mentorship, market access, connections and real-world opportunities that help entrepreneurs move from idea to launch to sustainable growth. The "industry-agnostic" incubator was founded in 2022 and is led by Executive Director Erica Delgadillo.

This year, the organization moved from primarily serving as a coworking and community space into a more comprehensive entrepreneurial incubator by expanding its MarMo Market, MarMo Market Jr. and Lunch LineUp programs. A major focus for MarMo is food entrepreneurship. It is developing an Incubator Kitchen, which MarMo says will support programs like its Cottage to Commercial Bootcamp and Food Biz 101. The organization also expanded its board this year and says it is diversifying its revenue through memberships, events, markets, equipment and space rentals, sponsorships, grants and new entrepreneurial programming.

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This article first appeared on InnovationMap.com.

Sage Geosystems taps Halliburton to advance Nevada geothermal project

power partnership

Houston-based Sage Geosystems has selected oil and gas powerhouse Halliburton to provide cementing and stimulation services at its enhanced geothermal project in Nevada known as Project Vector.

“Our technology and experience will support Sage as it advances its geopressured geothermal technology,” Shawn Skobel, vice president at Halliburton, said in a news release.

Halliburton will provide Sage with technical modeling, engineering design, and field execution support as part of its specialized cementing and stimulation services at Project Vector at Ormat Technologies' Blue Mountain geothermal power plant. Sage announced the location of the geothermal project in September.

At the time, Sage said it expected to begin drilling the first well at Project Vector this year, with the first electricity to be generated in 2027 and full-scale production to start in 2028.

The project will use Sage’s enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) method in a two-well system to convert geothermal heat into electricity. The project aims to help meet industrial and residential demand, especially as data centers strain energy grids.

Founded in 2020, Sage has raised $159 million across three funding rounds. Its technology aims to reach Earth’s natural heat source deep underground for more consistent power generation and utilizes engineered subsurface reservoirs to minimize water and energy losses and increase net power output. Through the process, Sage says it can enable reliable, 24/7 power generation.

“One of the keys to scaling next-generation geothermal is combining innovative subsurface technology with the proven capabilities and execution of the oil and gas industry,” Jason Peart, Chief Operating Officer of Sage Geosystems, added in the news release. “Halliburton brings decades of experience in well integrity and reservoir stimulation, two critical components of our development approach. By selecting an established industry leader, we are strengthening our ability to execute Project Vector and demonstrate that Sage’s technology can be replicated and deployed commercially across a broad range of geologies.”

Sage is building off prior success of its South Texas SMECI facility, which began operations in August. Project Vector supports Sage’s growing commercial pipeline, which includes a 150-megawatt geothermal power agreement with Meta.

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