Exxon plans $50B in investments

Exxon Mobil Corp. plans to invest $50B in the U.S. due in part to recently-approved corporate tax rate cuts, CEO Darren Woods said in a Jan. 29 company website blog. Exxon expects to spend $50B in American-based projects over the next five years. Exxon is "actively evaluating" projects now in planning stages as a result of new tax and regulatory changes, he wrote. More than $35B will be for previously unannounced projects, according to firm spokesman Scott Silvestri. Exxon previously pledged tens of billions of dollars for U.S. refining, petrochemical and shale exploration efforts. Last spring, it laid out a $20B investment in its Gulf Coast chemical and oil refining operations through 2022. (Source: Maritime Global News 01/29/18)