Unocal Seeking to Lease Headquarters in El Segundo

Unocal Corp. confirmed Monday that it is negotiating to lease a new corporate headquarters in El Segundo after months of speculation about where the oil company would move its home office.

If the deal goes through, Unocal will leave its landmark Downtown headquarters, sold in 1988, and move its much-reduced corporate staff to the newly refurbished Plaza at Continental Park on Rosecrans Boulevard, according to Unocal spokesman Barry Lane. “If we have the lease signed here fairly soon, we’ll be able to make the move by the end of the year,” he said.

Of the 900 employees that were in the Downtown headquarters as of January, about 135 will move to El Segundo along with Chief Executive Roger C. Beach, President John F. Imle Jr. and Chief Financial Officer Neal E. Schmale.

Another 300 Downtown employees will move next year to Unocal’s facility in Brea. Other Downtown workers will be moved to Sugar Land, Tex., headquarters for Unocal’s oil and gas exploration and production, accounting and business development units. The company is also in negotiations to move 700 employees of its 76 Products Co. subsidiary to newly leased space in Costa Mesa.

About 150 Downtown employees will be laid off as part of a restructuring announced in November that will cut 40% of Unocal’s companywide corporate staff.