By Kimberley Kao and Ben Otto


Chevron has completed its exit from Myanmar, giving up its stake in the country's largest natural gas project two years after saying it would depart the troubled Southeast Asian nation in the wake of a military coup.

A spokesperson for the U.S. energy giant confirmed Tuesday that two of its units had formally withdrawn Chevron's stakes in the offshore Yadana natural gas project and an associated pipeline company.

Chevron redistributed its 41% stake in Yadana to Thailand's state-owned energy group PTT Exploration & Production and Myanmar's state-owned Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise, the project's two remaining shareholders.

"The withdrawal gives effect to our intention to exit Myanmar in a controlled and orderly manner, following the February 2021 coup, and ongoing humanitarian crisis," the Chevron spokesperson said.

Chevron in 2022 announced its plan to exit Myanmar, later agreeing to sell its assets in the country to Canadian oil firm MTI Energy.

It declined to comment Tuesday on why it had chosen to redistribute the stake instead, but said it had carried out its exit "in a responsible, orderly and safe manner, in accordance with international law and trade sanctions."

Chevron won't book a financial gain from the redistribution, the spokesperson confirmed.

PTTEP said separately in a filing to the Thai stock exchange that Chevron's withdrawal was effective April 1, and that the Thai company's stake in Yadana had risen to almost 63%. PTTEP has been the project's operator since 2022, when French oil-and-gas group TotalEnergies withdrew both as partner and operator as part of its own exit from Myanmar.

Yadana, located about 60 kilometers offshore in the Andaman Sea, is Myanmar's largest natural gas project, and one of the biggest in Southeast Asia. It produced about half of all gas consumed in Myanmar in 2021, according to PTTEP.

Chevron's withdrawal marks the end of a decades-long foray into Myanmar, a country of about 55 million people whose political conflicts have frustrated attempts to shake off its relative isolation and draw more foreign investment to catch up to more developed neighbors like Thailand and Vietnam.

The exit comes after a host of other international companies pulled up roots in Myanmar following the 2021 coup and resulting sanctions from major economies against the new regime. Malaysia's Axiata Group last week announced its departure after a venture that lasted less than a decade. Norway's Telenor, Qatar's Ooredoo, Australia's Woodside and British American Tobacco are among others to have retreated from the country.


Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

04-09-24 0550ET