Chevron expects a final investment decision on Project Kilby by end-2026, with first power delivery to the co-located Microsoft data centre in 2028. The plant uses GE Vernova turbines whose order backlog already runs to 2029.Source: Lowdown

What is Chevron's Project Kilby and how large is it?

Project Kilby is a 2.67 GW gas-fired power plant co-located with a Microsoft data centre in West Texas, built under a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement signed in June 2026 at an estimated $7 billion capex; it is the largest dedicated data-centre generation deal struck in 2026, with first power expected in 2028.Source: Lowdown

Who co-owns the Caspian Pipeline Consortium alongside Chevron?

The CPC's shareholders include Chevron, ExxonMobil, and KazMunayGas, the Kazakh state oil company. Their shared stake in the pipeline puts multiple American corporations in direct dependence on infrastructure that runs through Russian-controlled territory.Source: Lowdown / State Department briefing

Background

Chevron holds a 50% stake in Tengizchevroil, the joint venture operating Kazakhstan's Tengiz oilfield, and is a shareholder in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) whose Novorossiysk terminal Ukraine struck on 6 April 2026. The US State Department formally warned Kyiv to stop targeting CPC infrastructure following the strike, an intervention characterised as protecting American oil majors rather than defending Moscow.

The second-largest US oil and gas company by market capitalisation, Chevron is headquartered in San Ramon, California. Its Tengiz production runs at roughly 700,000 Barrels Per Day at peak; the crude export chain runs entirely through Russian-controlled infrastructure, the CPC pipeline and the Novorossiysk Black Sea terminal, making Chevron directly exposed to any disruption of that route.

In June 2026 Chevron entered data-centre power generation through Energy Forge One, its dedicated power unit, by signing a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement with Microsoft to build Project Kilby, a 2.67 GW gas-fired plant co-located with a West Texas data centre. The plant feeds the data centre directly behind the meter, bypassing the grid interconnection queue. At an estimated $7 billion capex using GE Vernova turbines, it is the largest dedicated data-centre generation deal struck in 2026.

Its Caspian assets depend on Russian-controlled export infrastructure while Project Kilby bets on the US data-centre power boom; a final investment decision is expected by end-2026.

More questions

How dependent is Chevron on Russian infrastructure to export its Kazakhstan oil?

Completely. Tengiz crude runs entirely through the CPC pipeline across Russia to the Novorossiysk Black Sea terminal. There is no alternative export route for Tengizchevroil production, making Chevron directly exposed to any disruption of Russian-controlled infrastructure.Source: Lowdown

Why did the US State Department warn Ukraine not to attack Chevron's oil pipeline?

Chevron holds a 50% stake in Tengizchevroil and is a shareholder in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium; the CPC's Novorossiysk terminal is the only export route for Tengiz crude, and Ukraine struck it on 6 April 2026 as part of its energy warfare strategy. Washington's warning was characterised as protecting American corporate assets.Source: Lowdown / US State Department

How the World Sees Them

Ukraine

Kyiv views the State Department warning as the US prioritising its oil majors over Ukraine's strategic leverage; Zelenskyy defied it and proposed a mutual energy ceasefire instead.

Kazakhstan

Astana's ability to export Tengiz production depends on Chevron's ability to maintain CPC operations; the strike introduced export uncertainty for a country officially neutral in the war.

United States

Washington faces a structural conflict: supporting Ukraine's energy warfare while protecting Chevron and ExxonMobil's pipeline-dependent Caspian assets.