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Chevron ( CVX ) processes 50,000 bpd Venezuelan crude at

Pascagoula

refinery

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Potential to increase Venezuelan output by 50% with U.S.

government approval

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Chevron ( CVX ) reviews new Venezuelan hydrocarbons law for

potential

expansion

By Sheila Dang and Vallari Srivastava

HOUSTON, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Chevron ( CVX ) CEO Mike

Wirth said on ‌Friday the U.S. oil major can process an

additional 100,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan crude at ​its

refineries.

"We've been bringing about 50,000 barrels a day, give or take,

into ‍our Pascagoula, Mississippi, refinery on the Gulf Coast. We

can ⁠take another 100,000 ⁠barrels a day into our system, both at

Pascagoula and on the West Coast, where we've ‌got coking

capacity at El Segundo," Wirth said ​during a fourth-quarter

conference call with analysts.

"So I think you should expect to see us, assuming it

competes against alternatives, to ⁠be running more Venezuelan

crude in our ‍system over ​time."

When asked about the amount of Venezuelan crude U.S. Gulf

Coast refiners could absorb before impacting current price

differentials with lighter crude or disrupting ‍the flow of heavy

crude from Canada, Wirth said a new equilibrium will be

established.

"As you bring more of these barrels in ... they're going to

redistribute around the world," he said.

Chevron ( CVX ), the only U.S. oil major operating in Venezuela,

currently produces around 250,000 barrels per day in the South

American country ​and sees ‍potential to increase output by an

incremental 50% over the next 18 to 24 months provided there are

additional authorizations from the U.S. ​government. For a

longer-term outlook, however, Wirth said the company needs to

see stability in the country.

"We need to have confidence in the fiscal regime," Wirth said,

adding that the company is in the process of reviewing a

hydrocarbons law reform that was passed by Venezuela's National

Assembly on Thursday.

"With the right changes, we certainly could see our

operations ​and footprint expand in Venezuela, and we're working

with the U.S. government and the Venezuelan government to try

and create circumstances that would enable that," he said.