Chevron put its South Belridge oil fields up for sale.

The San Francisco-based oil company said it will sell the San Joaquin Valley oil properties--which are almost fully developed--to help pay down the debt that it took on when it acquired Gulf Oil last year. In June, the 450-acre region accounted for about 5.5% of Chevron’s San Joaquin production. Chevron said its $1.3-billion plan to develop the region wouldn’t be affected by the sale. In another development, the company said it won’t process crude oil at a 350,000-barrel Freeport, Bahamas, refinery because of low worldwide demand for fuel oil. The refinery is owned by Chevron and Charter Oil.