The second-largest U.S. oil company by market value lost nearly $1.7 billion in the first six months and is expected to post another quarterly loss when results are released on Oct. 30.
The job cuts are part of a plan unveiled earlier this year to redesign how Exxon works and to increase competitiveness, CEO Darren Woods said in an email to its nearly 75,000-person workforce.
The company this year has exceeded a target of reducing operating expenses by $1 billion and capital budget spending by $10 billion, he wrote. But the COVID-19 pandemic has cut oil demand by about 20%, he said, delivering a “devastating impact” on the oil business.
He told employees that “we are very close” to completing the jobs review and that they could expect details soon.
“I wish I could say we were finished, but we are not. We still have some significant headwinds, more work to do and, unfortunately, further reductions are necessary,” he said in the email.
