ENERGY

Chevron Begins Pumping Oil at New North Sea Site: Chevron Corp. said it has begun to pump oil from the North Sea’s Alba field, which is believed to hold up to 400 million barrels of recoverable oil. Chevron U.K., operator and majority owner of the project, expects peak production of 70,000 barrels a day later this year. Partners in the project have spent $1 billion on the first phase of the Alba development. Plans for Phase 2, to develop the southern portion of the field, are under discussion. Alba, which was discovered in 1984, is the first of a “new generation” of North Sea fields likely to yield significant output from zones about half as deep as most North Sea fields, said Charles Smith, Chevron U.K. managing director.