Business

Chevron CEO details strategy to power AI data centers without grid costs

Published

2 months ago

2 February 2026

Chevron CEO details strategy to power AI data centers without grid costs

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth joins ‘Mornings with Maria’ to discuss record oil production, rising dividends and the company’s long-term growth strategy.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth detailed the company’s strategy to harness U.S. natural resources to meet soaring artificial intelligence power demand — without passing the cost along to consumers.

“As data centers need more and more electricity, and as we’re seeing pressure on the grid and electricity prices, we’re working to build an energy park that’s not connected to the grid, so the costs don’t flow to all consumers,” Wirth told “Mornings with Maria,” describing the approach as an advantage that allows the company to “convert energy into intelligence.”

Wirth joined FOX Business on Monday to discuss Chevron’s record performance and long-term growth strategy as artificial intelligence drives unprecedented demand for reliable electricity.

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Chevron CEO Mike Wirth gives the keynote address as top energy executives and ministers meet in Houston for the annual Gastech conference in Houston, Texas, on Sept. 17, 2024. (Reuters/Callaghan O’Hare / Reuters)

He said the company is leveraging the “tremendous resource” of U.S. natural gas to generate power directly for hyperscale data centers, bypassing the traditional electric grid and insulating the public from higher electricity costs.

“This is another advantage where you can convert energy into intelligence, and the abundance of energy that this country has can translate not only into energy dominance but into AI dominance,” Wirth told Maria Bartiromo.

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Natural gas burns at a plant on the Permian Basin in Garden City, Texas

Flared natural gas is burned off at Apache Corporations operations at the Deadwood natural gas plant in the Permian Basin on Feb. 5, 2015 in Garden City, Texas. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Chevron revealed plans in 2025 to develop an off-grid natural gas facility in West Texas designed to generate electricity for large-scale data centers without relying on the traditional power grid.

The company previously announced a partnership with activist investment firm Engine No. 1 and GE Vernova to explore natural gas-powered solutions aimed at supporting the rapid expansion of AI and data center infrastructure in the United States.

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FOX Business correspondent Madison Alworth reports on Lonestar planning A.I. data centers in space, with satellites launching this fall and goals for lunar centers by 2030 on ‘Varney & Co.’

The discussion comes as Chevron posted a record year of oil production that helped offset the pinch of lower oil prices.

Wirth said the company’s free cash flow rose 35%, along with a series of other financial gains, even as oil prices fell by 15%.

Business

Non-life insurers seen holding up better than life peers

Published

2 minutes ago

7 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Non-life insurers seen holding up better than life peers

Mumbai: Indian insurers across the spectrum of services are expected to report rather circumspect fourth-quarter earnings, with a meltdown in equities in the aftermath of the Iran war wiping out investment gains for bulge-bracket institutional holders of stock, brokerages said.

Industry profitability is expected to be muted due to market conditions, Emkay said in a report. It said the nearly 14% decline in the Nifty 50 during Q4 and a 40-basis point rise in bond yields weighed 4-5% negative economic variance for private life insurers and 1% negative for Life Insurance Corp (LIC)-the biggest local institutional holder of stock.

The annualised premium equivalent (APE) in FY26 at life insurers would expand in high single digits. This slowdown in life insurance demand is partly driven by equity market volatility and rising yield expectations, which have dampened demand for ULIPs and non-par guaranteed products.

However, Axis Max Life is expected to lead followed by Life Insurance Corporation of India.

HDFC Life is expected to report single-digit APE growth, with traction balanced across savings products, while value of new business (VNB) margins are likely to remain stable at around 24.5%. ICICI Prudential Life may see higher single-digit growth, with VNB margins at about 24%.

SBI Life is likely to report high single-digit APE growth in the quarter, with FY26 APE growth estimated at around 14% year-on-year, impacted by a slowdown in ULIP sales toward the latter half of March amid volatile equity markets. Its VNB margins are expected to remain stable at around 27%. LIC is likely to report a relatively stronger 13% growth, aided by group business, with VNB margins around 20% as it continues to pivot toward non-participating products.
In contrast, general and standalone health insurers are expected to deliver robust growth. ICICI Lombard General Insurance is likely to report 10-12% growth in gross written premium, supported by motor and health segments, although commercial lines may see a slowdown. Its combined ratio is expected to remain broadly flat at around 102.6%, weighed down by higher expense ratios. Star Health and Allied Insurance is expected to post strong double-digit growth, aided by improved affordability following GST rate changes and normalisation of earlier regulatory impacts. Both claims and combined ratios are likely to improve.