Chevron said that it would write down $11 billion in assets in the fourth quarter, much of which is tied to natural gas in Appalachia. The impairment is a sign that the waters are getting pretty rough for the oil and gas industry, due to a combination of supply surpluses, low prices, the struggling and unproven business case for large-scale shale drilling, and the looming threat of peak demand. The write down comes as Chevron lowered its long-term forecast for oil and gas prices, which directly impacted the value of its assets. “We have to make the tough choices to high-grade our portfolio and invest in the highest-return projects in the world we see ahead of us, and that’s a different world than the one that lies behind us,” Chevron Chief Executive Mike Wirth said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal . The WSJ says the admission […]