Chevron CEO Sees Growing Potential in Biofuels and Geothermal Energy
Posted by Robert Buluma | December 11, 2025
The energy world is changing fast, and Chevron, one of the oldest and largest oil companies on the planet, is not sitting on the sidelines. In a recent wide-ranging interview with The Wall Street Journal, Chevron CEO Mike Wirth made it clear: the company sees major, long-term growth in two areas that have nothing to do with crude oil,biofuels and geothermal energy. For a company built on drilling for hydrocarbons, this pivot toward heat from the Earth’s core and fuels grown from plants is nothing short of remarkable.
From Black Gold to Green Heat: Why Chevron Is Betting Big on Geothermal
Geothermal energy has long been the quiet, reliable cousin in the renewable family,always there, rarely flashy, but suddenly very attractive. Unlike solar panels that go dark at night or wind turbines that stop when the air is still, geothermal plants deliver steady, 24/7 baseload power by tapping into the planet’s natural heat just a few miles below the surface.
Mike Wirth didn’t hide his enthusiasm. He told the Journal that Chevron’sChevron’s decades of subsurface expertise,honed by drilling millions of oil and gas wells,gives the company a unique edge in geothermal development. The same seismic imaging, horizontal drilling techniques, and high-temperature engineering that work in the Permian Basin can be redirected to chase heat instead of hydrocarbons.
Chevron is already moving fast. In 2021 it invested in Canadian startup Eavor Technologies, which is pioneering closed-loop geothermal systems that can work almost anywhere, not just near volcanoes or hot springs. A year later, Chevron formed a joint venture with Sweden-based Baseload CapitalBaseload Capital to develop projects across the United States. Their first major move: breaking ground on a geothermal power plant in Nevada’s Weepah Hills, with plans to deliver the first 5 megawatts of clean electricity by late 2025.
Long-time observers will point out that Chevron isn’t entirely new to geothermal. For decades it has operated two of the world’s largest geothermal fields in Indonesia,Salak and Darajat,producing more than 700 megawatts combined. That experience is now being brought home. The company is actively scouting new opportunities in California’s legendary Geysers field in California, exploring emerging hot spots in Texas, and studying enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) that could unlock vast new resources across the American West.
The economics are starting to make sense. Drilling costs have fallen dramatically in the past decade, federal tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act have improved project returns, and electricity demand is exploding thanks to data centers, electric vehicles, and industrial electrification. Suddenly, geothermal isn’t a niche play,it’s becoming a mainstream opportunity, and Chevron intends to be at the front of the line.
Biofuels: The Bridge That Keeps Refineries Running
While geothermal grabs headlines for its futuristic appeal, biofuels remain Chevron’s largest and most immediate lower-carbon business. In 2022, Chevron spent $3 billion to acquire Renewable Energy Group (REG), instantly making it one of the biggest producers of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel in the United States.
Today Chevron can produce over half a billion gallons a year of renewable diesel,made from used cooking oil, animal fats, and other waste products,at refineries in California and Texas. These fuels drop straight into existing pipelines, trucks, ships, and airplanes with zero modifications required, yet cut lifecycle carbon emissions by up to 80% compared to petroleum diesel.
Wirth calls sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) a potential game-changer, especially as airlines face mounting pressure (and eventually mandates) to decarbonize. Chevron is already supplying SAF made from waste oils to customers like United Airlines and has ambitious plans to scale production further in the second half of the decade.
A Pragmatic, Profitable Path Through the Energy Transition
What makes Chevron’s strategy stand out is its realism. The company isn’t pretending oil demand will vanish overnight. Instead, it’s using cash flow from hydrocarbons to fund growth in lower-carbon businesses that play to its existing strengths: large-scale engineering, project execution, global supply chains, and deep technical talent in geology and drilling.
Geothermal and biofuels also give Chevron something many pure-play renewable companies lack,dispatchable, reliable energy and liquid fuels that work with today’s infrastructure. In an electricity grid increasingly strained by intermittent renewables, geothermal’s ability to run at 90–95% capacity factor is priceless. In aviation fuel that actually works in existing jet engines is priceless too.
Challenges Remain, But the Momentum Is Real
None of this is easy. Geothermal projects still face high upfront costs, complex permitting (especially on federal lands), and a shortage of experienced geothermal engineers. Biofuel feedstocks can be volatile in price and availability. Yet every year the barriers fall a little further: drilling gets cheaper, policy support grows stronger, and customer demand for clean energy becomes more urgent.
Investors have taken notice. Chevron shares have outperformed many peers in recent years, helped by a rock-solid dividend and growing confidence that the company can thrive in a lower-carbon world without abandoning what it already does best.
The Bottom Line
Mike Wirth summed it up simply in the Journal interview: Chevron is building a business “for the long haul.” That long haul now includes steam rising from deep underground and diesel made from yesterday’s french-fry oil,not just crude from the Permian or the Gulf of Mexico.
For a 145-year-old oil major, embracing geothermal heat and plant-based fuels isn’t just diversification. It’s evolution. And if Chevron executes half as well in these new arenas as it has in its traditional ones, the rest of the energy world will have to take notice.
What do you think,is Chevron’s geothermal and biofuel push a genuine transformation or smart hedging by a savvy incumbent? Will Big Oil end up leading chunks of the energy transition whether environmentalists like it or not? Drop your thoughts below.
Related: Chevron Goes Slow On Oil For Indonesian Geothermal
Source: Wall Street Journal
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