Chevron prevailed over Exxon Mobil in a high-stakes legal dispute, clearing the way for Chevron to buy into one of the world’s most valuable oil developments.

The ruling by the Paris-based International Chamber of Commerce on Friday means that Chevron can move forward with its acquisition of a smaller rival, Hess, for $53 billion.

It is a major win for America’s second-largest oil company, which is based in Houston and has been waiting nearly two years to close this deal amid growing investor concerns about the company’s future.

In Hess, Chevron gets a piece of a lucrative oil project off the shores of Guyana, in South America. It also gains an array of other assets, from North Dakota to Southeast Asia, that will extend the company’s runway of drilling opportunities and give it the ability to better compete with the likes of Exxon, its larger U.S. rival.

Exxon and Chevron have been fighting over Hess’s stake in Guyana for more than a year, at great cost to Chevron. The battle left the smaller oil major in limbo, unable to close its deal for Hess — and also unable to move on.

Chevron’s stock price had suffered, falling around 9 percent from when the company announced the Hess deal in October 2023 through Thursday. For Exxon, whose share price rose less than 1 percent in that time, there was comparatively little to lose.