Chevron pulls out of Lithuania

  • 2014-07-09
  • From wire reports, VILNIUS

U.S. energy company Chevron has withdrawn its office from Lithuania, axing jobs in its wake.

The firm said it had sold 50 percent of its shares of Lithuanian petroleum company LL Investicijos  which it acquired in 2013 for 16.7 million euros, vz.lt reports.

The Verslo Zinios daily newspaper reports that sales dropped after Chevron withdrew from a shale gas extraction tender in 2013.

Lithuania's Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius had previously said that the company was not leaving Lithuania. According to Butkevicius, Chevron withdrew from the shale gas tender lat year due to incomplete legal framework.

"First of all we must finish creating legal framework for such activity (shale gas extraction). Clarity is needed, we hope that Chevron will not refuse to participate in future projects," Butkevicius had preiously said.

However, according to Verslo Zinios, all that was left were empty promises as no progress was made in a year.