Abundant natural gas resources, an all-electric plant and just a nine-day hop to energy-hungry Asian markets were not enough to persuade Chevron Corp. to pursue its Kitimat gas export project in western Canada, marking a further blow to the country’s beleaguered fossil fuel industry.

BP Plc agreed to sell its entire business in Alaska to closely held Hilcorp Energy Co. for $5.6 billion, ending a six-decade presence in the state as oil production there declines.

Chevron Corp. posted strong production growth from the Permian Basin combined with a stabilization in its refining operations to beat earnings estimates in the second quarter.

Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp.’s unwillingness to venture beyond their core oil and gas business will face a test May 29 when shareholders vote on climate change proposals at both oil companies’ annual meetings.

Exxon Mobil Corp. is partnering with Microsoft Corp. to crunch trillions of bits of data as the oil titan seeks to more than triple shale-oil production in the Permian Basin in less than a decade.

The low break-even costs to pump in the Permian are forcing Chevron to be more efficient everywhere, Wirth said, from the deepwater platforms in the Gulf of Mexico to its liquefied natural gas plants.

U.S. oil and gas producers expect their borrowing ability to increase over the next few months, leaving them open to invest in new shale assets, particularly the Eagle Ford in Texas.