(Touchstone, 26.Mar.2020) — Touchstone Exploration Inc. reports its operating and financial results for the three months and year ended December 31, 2019. Selected information is outlined below and should be read in conjunction with Touchstone’s December 31, 2019 audited consolidated financial statements, the related Management’s discussion and analysis and Annual […]
Category: Latin America and the Caribbean
Brazil’s Petrobras On Dividend Payment
(Petrobras, 26.Mar.2020) — Petrobras informs that its Board of Directors, in a meeting held yesterday, approved the change in the date of payment of the remaining remuneration to the shareholders in the form of dividends for the year 2019, which was subject to the resolution of the Annual General Meeting, […]
Ecopetrol General Shareholders’ Meeting
(Ecopetrol, 25.Mar.2020) — In accordance with the authorizations and recommendations provided by the Colombian Financial Superintendence and the Superintendence of Companies, the President of Ecopetrol S.A. (the “Company”) is permitted to publicize the call notice published on February 25, 2020 and its reminder published on March 22, 2020 in order […]
CNOOC: Production And Reserves Hit Record
(CNOOC, 25.Mar.2020 — CNOOC Limited announced its 2019 annual results for the year ended December 31, 2019. In 2019, CNOOC Limited has achieved remarkable results, with multiple operating indicators reached a record level since its listing. Total net oil and gas production of the Company amounted to 506.5 million barrels […]
YPF Inks Deals With Ministries For Truckers
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky, 25.Mar.2020) — YPF President Guillermo Nielsen signed an agreement with the representatives from Argentina’s ministries of Transportation, Security, Health, Interior and Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries; the National Commission for Transport Regulation; and the National Federation of Truck Workers, among other entities of the sector, to […]
Petrobras BODs Oks Creation Of Logistics Office
(Petrobras, 25.Mar.2020) — Petrobras reports that its Board of Directors, in a meeting held today, approved the creation of the Logistics Office and the election of AndrĂ© Barreto Chiarini to the respective position of Chief Logistics Officer. The Board of Directors also approved the dissolution of the Corporate Affairs Office […]
YPF Head Warns Of Difficult Times
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky, 24.Mar.2020) — The effects of social, preventive and compulsory isolation are beginning to be reflected in the drop in energy consumption, announced YPF CEO Daniel González in a video shared with employees of the Argentine oil company, and in which he warned the company’s income […]
Guyana’s New Oil Economy Under Pressure
(Bloomberg, 24.Mar.2020) — When Exxon Mobil Corp. came to Guyana, the US oil giant brought with it the promise of extraordinary economic growth. Now the tiny South American country is embroiled in a bitter battle over who might control that wealth just as the crude starts to flow. In November, […]
Fuel Trickling Into Venezuela, Oil Loading
(Argus, 24.Mar.2020) — Some gasoline is trickling into Venezuela, while a few crude cargoes are still getting out, but the volumes and revenue are dwarfed by the US-sanctioned country’s dire need for fuel and revenue to check the galloping coronavirus. According to shipping sources inside and outside Venezuela, current port […]
LatAm NRG Producers Sweat To Cover Costs
(Reuters, 24.Mar.2020) — A price war between the world’s oil powerhouses is leaving many producers in Latin American struggling to cover production costs, boosting chances of output cuts and investment delays in coming months. Global oil price benchmarks have had their steepest declines in decades in a perfect storm of […]
First Quantum Eyes Stake Sale In Panama Mine
(Reuters, 24.Mar.2020) — Miner First Quantum Minerals FM.TO is considering selling a minority stake in its flagship Cobre Panama copper mine to reduce debt, two banking sources familiar with the discussions said. First Quantum’s possible move comes as global miners scramble to bolster finances strained by the coronavirus pandemic, which […]
Sempra’s Virtual Investor Day Focuses On Resilience
(Sempra, 24.Mar.2020) — Sempra Energy’s senior management team is providing an update on the company’s business strategy on an Investor Day conference call, including details on the company’s five-year capital plan, projected rate base growth, segment-level earnings guidance and planned improvements to balance sheet strength. “In the midst of a […]
LNG Exports Sink In Quarantined Peru
(Argus, 24.Mar.2020) — Peru’s natural gas production has been steadily declining and the Peru LNG plant has been idle since the government issued a national lockdown a week ago to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. Gas production has fallen from 1.12bn cf/d on 15 March, the day the […]
Libre Abordo To Take Up To 15mn Bbls Of Venezuelan Oil
(Reuters, 24.Mar.2020) — Mexico’s Libre Abordo and a related company plan to take some 15 million barrels of Venezuelan crude as part of a first oil-for-food contract with President Nicolas Maduro’s government, the company told Reuters on Tuesday. Since it received its first cargo of Venezuelan oil in late 2019 […]
Talos Energy Reports Budget Reductions
(Talos, 23.Mar.2020) — Talos Energy Inc. announced updated full year 2020 financial guidance, inclusive of $170 million of reductions in capital, operating and G&A expenses. The Company will continue to evaluate additional opportunities to further reduce 2020 costs. Those reductions would be incremental to the $170.0 million already identified. Talos […]
Frontera Responds To Lower Oil Price Environment
(Frontera, 23.Mar.2020) — Frontera Energy Corporation announced responses to the lower oil price environment caused by excess global supply and the COVID-19 pandemic, which includes a reduction in the 2020 capital plan and acceleration of cost savings initiatives. In connection with these cost savings initiatives, and in an effort to […]
Staatsolie Issues $195mn International Bond
(Staatsolie, 23.Mar.2020) —  Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname N.V. issued a US$ 195 million bond in Suriname and Curaçao on 23 March 2020. This bond issuance is internationally listed on the Dutch Caribbean Securities Exchange (DCSX). De Surinaamsche Bank N.V. is the arranger. The listing of the 2020-2025/2027 bond on the DCSX […]
US Targets Maduro Regime With Fresh Charges
(WSJ, 22.Mar.2020) — The U.S. quietly unsealed criminal cases against two former officials at Venezuela’s state oil monopoly this month as part of what American officials say is a new round of charges and sanctions against a Maduro government they accuse of systemic corruption, narcotrafficking and stealing billions of dollars […]
Curacao Seizes PDVSA Oil Terminal In Dutch Caribbean
(Reuters, 20.Mar.2020) — Curacao state-owned oil refinery Refineria di Korsou (RdK) on Friday seized an oil storage terminal on the Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire over a payment dispute with Venezuela’s state-run PDVSA oil firm, a RdK official said. Curacao will seek Dutch court approvals to sell Bonaire Petroleum Corp […]
Tullow Writes Off Jamaican Oil Exploration Licence
(Jamaica Gleaner, 20.Mar.2020) — Tullow Oil Plc has fully written off its oil exploration licence for the Walton-Morant Basin offshore Jamaica, on which it has taken a US$36-million hit. The write-off relates to what the company indicated in its most recent earnings report was the relinquishment of the Walton-Morant licence […]
Latin America’s Spot Oil Sales Hit By Low Prices
(Reuters, 20.Mar.2020) — Spot sales of Latin America’s heavy crudes mostly dried up this week amid a demand contraction and steep slump in oil prices that left some heavy grades below the $10-per-barrel level, traders from producing companies told Reuters on Friday. Latin American crude prices have fallen by around […]
Pemex Vulnerable To Oil Prices Below $20/bbl: Fitch
(Reuters, 20.Mar.2020) — Mexico’s heavily-indebted state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos is increasingly vulnerable to low crude prices as the fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak erodes demand and sends markets tumbling, Fitch Ratings said on Friday. The ratings agency called Pemex, as the company is known, the “most vulnerable” among its peers in […]
IMF Managing Dir. Kristalina Georgieva On Argentina
(IMF, 20.Mar.2020) — At the request of the Argentine authorities and reflecting close collaboration with them, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released today a technical note prepared by IMF staff on Argentina’s public debt sustainability. The technical note sets out staff’s views on a feasible macroeconomic framework and on Argentina’s […]
Pemex’s Maya Crude Reverses Gains: Platts
(Reuters, 20.Mar.2020) — The official selling price of Mexican state-run oil company Pemex’s flagship Maya heavy crude for U.S. Gulf Coast delivery fell by $2.89 per barrel on Friday, according pricing data from S&P Global Platts. Maya crude’s closing price stood at $15.13 per barrel, or down 16% from previous […]
Exxon, Guyana Head Toward Uncertain Future
(OilandGas360.com, 20.Mar.2020) — They are the odd couple of the global oil patch: Guyana is a poor former British sugar colony. Exxon Mobil is America’s largest oil company. They came to depend on each other after a series of extraordinary oil discoveries off Guyana’s coast transformed the small South American […]
Total Renounces Rights To Deep Water Mexican Block
(Reuters, 20.Mar.2020) — Mexico’s oil regulator approved on Friday a request by French oil company Total SA to give up its exploration and production rights to a deep water block in the southern Gulf of Mexico that the firm had won at auction in 2016. The regulator said Total decided […]
CNH On Total And Servicios MĂşltiples de Burgos
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 20.Mar.2020) — Mexico’s National Hydrocarbons Commission (CNH) announced updates on three resolutions affecting Total E&P MĂ©xico, S.A. de C.V., Servicios MĂşltiples de Burgos, S.A. de C.V., and the first stage of the development plan for the extraction of contract CNH-R01-L02-A2 / 2015. The CNH decided […]
YPF Suspending Noncritical Activities
(Reuters, 20.Mar.2020) — Argentine state-run energy firm YPF said on Thursday it will gradually suspend activities not critical to its business, and will scale down staff to a minimum at essential operations to ensure energy supply amid the coronavirus outbreak. The company, which leads production activities in the Vaca Muerta […]
US Calls For Humanitarian Release Of Citgo 6
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 19.Mar.2020) — The US calls for humanitarian release of wrongfully detained Americans in Venezuela. © Energy Analytics Institute (EAI). All Rights Reserved. ***
Caricom On Withdrawal Of Team From Guyana
(Caricom, 18.Mar.2020) — The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) deeply regrets that it has been forced to withdraw the independent High Level Team it fielded on Saturday, 14 March 2020, to supervise the re-counting of the ballots in Region 4 of the General and Regional Elections of 2 March 2020 in Guyana. […]
Petrobras On EspĂrito Santo Basin E&P Assets
(Petrobras, 18.Mar.2020) — Petrobras, following up on the release dated 15 January 2020, announces the beginning of the binding phase regarding the sale of its entire interest in two sets of offshore concessions, called Golfinho Cluster and Camarupim Cluster, located in deep waters, in the EspĂrito Santo Basin, in EspĂrito […]
Petrobras On Gaspetro’s Non-binding Phase
(Petrobras, 18.Mar.2020) — Petrobras, following up on the press release disclosed on February 27, 2020, regarding the sale of its entire 51% stake in Petrobras Gás S.A. (Gaspetro), announces the postponement of the deadline to qualify potential buyers for the non-binding phase for April 30, 2020. The adjusted teaser is […]
Commonwealth Group Comments On Guyana
(Commonwealth, 18.Mar.2020) — The Commonwealth Observer Group to the 2 March 2020 General and Regional Elections was constituted and deployed by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, following an invitation from the Government of Guyana. The Group withdrew from Guyana on 15 March 2020. It is the clear and considered view […]
EP Petroecuador Says Activities Normal
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 18.Mar.2020) — Ecuador’s state oil company EP PetroEcuador announced 18 March 2020 in an official statement that it guarantees normal development of its activities and operations related to the commercialization of derivatives for national and international consumption. PetroEcuador Fuel Shipments 16-19 March 2020 LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM […]
PetroEcuador Implementing Coronavirus Protocols
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 18.Mar.2020) — Ecuador’s state oil company EP PetroEcuador has begun to implement office protocols to reduce the spread of coronvirus. Once Ecuador declared a health emergency, PetroEcuador began to implement safety precautions that would allow its activities to continue including those related to signing contracts […]
Gunvor Awarded Nafta Import Deal In Ecuador
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 18.Nov.2020) — Ecuador’s state oil company EP PetroEcuador awarded the company Gunvor S.A. a deal for the importation of 590,000 barrels of Nafta Ron N° 80, which is used as a mixture for the manufacture of gasoline. Gunvor won the tender with a positive differential […]
YPF Reports Record One Day Fractures
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky, 18.Mar.2020) — Argentina’s state oil company YPF announced positive results in regards its development of the country’s Vaca Muerta unconventional resources located in the NeuquĂ©n Basin. YPF carried out 12 fracture stages in one day, which constitutes a new milestone for the company’s unconventional operations […]
Hess Cuts CAPEX, Focuses On Guyana
(WorldOil, 17.Mar.2020) — Hess Corporation announced a revised $2.2 billion capital and exploratory budget for 2020, an $800 million reduction from the previous budget of $3.0 billion. The company also announced a new $1.0 billion three-year term loan agreement. These actions further strengthen the company’s cash position and financial liquidity […]
Oil Drop Could Cut 20% Off Exploration Budgets
(Reuters, 17.Mar.2020) — The recent collapse in oil prices could chop $300 million to $600 million off 2020 exploration budgets in Brazil, which has emerged as one of the world’s hottest offshore oil plays, specialists at consultancy Wood Mackenzie told Reuters. Before oil prices collapsed in the wake of failed […]
Columbus Ops In Trinidad Unaffected By Covid-19
(Alliance News, 17.Mar.2020) — Columbus Energy Resources PLC on Tuesday said operations in Trinidad are “largely unaffected” and remain open. The oil & gas producer and explorer said as of Monday, Trinidad & Tobago has four confirmed cased of coronavirus, with no fatalities. However, the government has implemented a range […]
Petrobras Reduces Workforce Amid Virus
(S&P Global Platts, 17.Mar.2020) — Brazilian state-led oil company Petrobras slashed administrative staff by at least 50%, including at operations units such as refineries and production facilities, amid expanding efforts across Latin America’s biggest country to limit social contact and avoid dissemination of COVID-19. “The measure seeks to contribute to […]
Ecopetrol Cuts CAPEX And Other Expenses, Costs
(Ecopetrol, 17.Mar.2020) — Ecopetrol S.A. informs that in an extraordinary session held on March 16, its Board of Directors adopted a set of actions to address the challenging market conditions, which have resulted, among other matters, in a 40% decline in the Brent crude price as compared to the end […]
Guyana’s Oil-soaked Election Heads For Recount
(Axios, 16.Mar.2020) — Guyana’s March 2 election came while the country is on the cusp of a transition from relative poverty to newfound wealth — and it was marred by severe irregularities that caused the U.S. and other countries to reject the result. Why it matters: The coming days could […]
Methanex Cut Production In Trinidad And Chile
(Methanex, 16.Mar.2020) — Methanex Corporation has idled its Titan plant in Trinidad effective today and will idle its Chile IV plant effective April 1, 2020. These changes are being made for an indefinite period. John Floren, President and CEO of Methanex, commented, “We anticipate that methanol demand could be impacted […]
Economic Fallout From Virus Felt In Venezuela
(ABC News, 16.Mar.2020) — Nicolás Maduro’s government on Monday banned gasoline sales in two states as part of a broader lock-down to stem panic buying by Venezuelans accustomed to hoarding basic goods whenever there’s a hint of turmoil. But his orders, which explicitly prohibit lines outside gas stations, were largely […]
EOG Resources Updates 2020 Capital Plan
(EOG, 16.Mar.2020) — EOG Resources, Inc. updated its full-year 2020 capital plan as a result of the significant decline and increased volatility of commodity prices. Exploration and development expenditures for 2020 are now expected to range from $4.3 billion to $4.7 billion, including facilities and gathering, processing and other expenditures, […]
PetroPar Launches Free Alcohol Initiative
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 14.Mar.2020) — Paraguay’s state oil company PetroPar launched an initiative to provide free alcohol at its petrol stations across the South American country for use for cleaning surfaces. The alcohol can be used daily to disinfect and cleans surfaces as part of preventive measures to […]
Ecuador Issues Sanitary Emergency Decree
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 14.Mar.2020) — Ecuador’s government has issued a sanitary emergency decree in response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to details revealed in an official statement from state oil company EP PetroEcuador. © Energy Analytics Institute (EAI). All Rights Reserved. ***
Joint Statement From Int’l Observers In Guyana
(The Carter Center, 13.Mar.2020) — The international observer missions from the Commonwealth, the European Union, and The Carter Center issue the following statement: The international election observation missions in Guyana are deeply concerned about the continued lack of transparency in the ascertainment of results for Region 4. The order of […]
Vitol Negotiates Venezuela Oil Purchase
(Oilprice.com, 13.Mar.2020) — The largest independent oil trader in the world, Vitol Group, is discussing the purchase of Venezuelan crude oil from a Mexican firm that had received the crude in exchange for aid, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing emails and documents that it has reviewed. Vitol hasn’t traded […]