(Citgo, 6.Dec.2019) â Citgo Petroleum Corporation reported strong financial and operational performance as the Board of Directors reviewed with the Shareholder the companyâs performance during the first nine months of 2019 at a meeting at Citgo headquarters in Houston. The report included net income of $270 million for the first […]
Category: North America
North America energy
Petrobras Plans $34bn In Dividends
(Bloomberg, Simon Casey and Sabrina Valle, 5.Dec.2019) â Petrobras plans to pay its shareholders $34 billion in dividends over the next five years as it cuts debt and sells assets to shore up its finances, CEO Roberto Castello Branco said. The plan is a major shift for the state-controlled oil […]
Petrobras Host Investor Day In NYC
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky, 4.Dec.2019) â Brazilâs state-controlled oil giant Petrobras hosted media and analyst during its annual investor day event in New York City on Dec. 4, which was followed by another in London on Dec. 6. What follows is the link to the 51-page presentation: Petrobras Investor […]
LatAm, US Ban Travel For Venezuela’s Maduro, Allies
(Reuters, Luis Jaime Acosta, 3.Dec.2019) â Fifteen countries in the Americas agreed on Tuesday to ban 29 Venezuelans, including the oil-producing countryâs president, Nicolas Maduro, and his close allies, from traveling within their borders as part of diplomatic efforts to push him to step down. The meeting included representatives from […]
Venezuela And Cuba âCircumvent Sanctionsâ
(Miami Herald, Jim Wyss and Nora Gamez Torres, 3.Dec.2019) â Washington continued to tighten its grip on Venezuela and Cuba on Tuesday, naming six oil tankers that deliver fuel from the South American nation to the island as âblocked property.â The action â just the latest in a series of […]
US Acts Against Movement Of Venezuelan Oil To Cuba
(US Department of State, 3.Dec.2019) â On December 3, the United States identified six PDVSA-owned vessels, pursuant to E.O. 13884 or 13850, being used by the former Maduro regime to ship oil to Cuba, announced US Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo. Related Story: OFAC Adds Six Vessels To List […]
OFAC Adds Six Vessels To List
(Piero Stewart, Energy Analytics Institute, 3.Dec.2019) â The US Department of the Treasuryâs Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) add six vessels to its SDN list as of 3 Dec. and as follows. — ICARO Crude Oil Tanker Panama flag; Vessel Registration Identification IMO 9038842 (vessel) [Venezuela-EO13884] (Linked To: PDVSA). […]
Bolivia Revises Gas Reserves, Fixes GCC Line
(Argus, Patricia Garip, 3.Dec.2019) â Bolivia’s new interim government has revised down the figure for natural gas reserves, applying a more conservative interpretation of the certified data. Proven reserves are 8.95 Tcf (254bn mÂł) as of the end of 2017, rather than 10.7 Tcf as the previous government had asserted, […]
Invenergy Expands Via Deal With Colombia’s EPM
(Invenergy, 2. Dec.2019) â Invenergy executed a strategic partnership agreement with Empresas Publicas de Medellin (EPM), one of Colombia’s largest public electric utilities, to develop, build, and operate large-scale wind and solar energy projects in Colombia. This partnership combines Invenergy’s renewable development and operational expertise with EPM’s domestic know-how to […]
Maduro Sent $900mn In Oil To Cuba, U.S. Official Said
(El Nuevo Herald, Nora GĂĄmez Torres, 27.Nov.2019) â Embattled leader NicolĂĄs Maduro sent about $900 million in oil to Cuba this year despite the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, a U.S. top diplomat told reporters on Wednesday. The U.S. special envoy for Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, said that Maduro has the money […]
Venezuela-linked Sanctions Put Floor Under Oil Spreads
(S&P Global Platts, 27.Nov.2019) â The benchmark Dubai crude futures market structure moved higher in mid-morning trade in Asia Wednesday as new sanctions imposed on a Cuban company over its links to Venezuelan oil tradingput the focus back on the global supply shortage of medium and heavy high sulfur crudes. […]
Rosneft Undermining US Plans In Venezuela?
(Atlantic Council, Matthew Bryza, 27.Nov.2019) â US President Donald Trump is conducting policies of âmaximum pressureâ on two countries, Venezuela and Iran. In Venezuela, Russiaâs state-owned oil company, Rosneft, actively undercuts this US policy by helping Caracas circumvent Washingtonâs tough economic sanctions. Yet Washington has not applied broad sanctions against […]
Conoco Seeks Seizure Of Citgo Parent
(Reuters, 26.Nov.2019) â U.S. oil company ConocoPhillips on Tuesday filed a motion in a Delaware court seeking to seize shares in the parent of U.S. refiner Citgo Petroleum to collect on an arbitration award against Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA. Citgo, a PDVSA subsidiary and Venezuelaâs crown jewel overseas asset, […]
Ecopetrol Targets Higher CAPEX In 2020
(Ecopetrol, 25.Nov.2019) â Ecopetrol S.A. reported that in 2020 the Ecopetrol Group (GE) plans to invest an expected US$4.5 to US$5.5 billion, 25% to 53% higher than the estimated 2019 figure for organic investment. The plan approved by the Board of Directors, which prioritizes opportunities under strict capital discipline, is […]
Valaris Announces New Contract Awards
(Valaris, 25.Nov.2019) â Valaris plc announced new contracts and contract extensions, with associated revenue backlog of approximately $285 million, awarded subsequent to a prior fleet status report dated October 25, 2019. — VALARIS DS-18 (Relentless) contract extended due to the exercise of a one-well priced option with EnVen in the […]
Pemex Cyberattack Has US Cos. Taking Precautions
(Chron.com, Sergio Chapa, 25.Nov.2019) â American oil companies operating south of the border are stepping up their cybersecurity measures after reports of a ransomware attack that allegedly knocked out computers at Mexico’s state-run oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex. Mexican media outlets have been reporting over the past two weeks […]
BPC And Baker Hughes Seal Bahamas Deal
(Offshore Energy, 22.Nov.2019) â Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) has finalized an agreement with Baker Hughes for the provision of equipment for its first exploration well in The Bahamas in 2020. However, the company is still working to secure the financing and finalize a rig contract with Seadrill. In August 2019, […]
Third Circuit Rejects Citgo Rehearing
(Argus, Elliott Blackburn, 21.Nov.2019) â Federal appeals court judges have denied Venezuela’s request to rehear a July decision upholding the pursuit of the country’s US refining subsidiary Citgo to satisfy billions of dollars of debts. The US Third Circuit Court of Appeals denied a request to hear arguments on the […]
US Court Denies Citgo Rehearing
(S&P Global Platts, 21.Nov.2019) â A US appeals court Thursday denied Venezuela’s request for it to reconsider its ruling allowing a PDVSA creditor to go after US refiner Citgo, its most valuable foreign asset. The ruling by 13 judges on the US 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia upholds […]
Venezuela Opposition In Citgo Deal
(Reuters, 19.Nov.2019) â Venezuelaâs opposition has reached a deal with the custodians of a bond issued by state oil company PDVSA to prevent bondholders from seizing U.S. refining subsidiary Citgo, the bondâs collateral, until May, according to court filings and a source. The opposition-appointed PDVSA board, which is recognized in […]
Is Big Oil Wasting Its Time in The US Shale Patch?
(Oilprice.com, Nick Cunningham, 19.Nov.2019) â Growth in the U.S. shale industry is dramatically slowing down, with cash-strapped drillers slashing spending and scrapping rigs. At the same time, the oil majors are consolidating their position and moving forward with aggressive drilling plans. The business model for small and medium-sized drillers has […]
Touchstone Reports Coho-1 Gas Test In Trinidad
(Touchstone, 18.Nov.2019) â Touchstone Exploration Inc. provides production test results for the Coho-1 well on the Ortoire exploration block, onshore in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. As previously reported, the Coho-1 exploration well (Touchstone 80% working interest operator, Heritage Petroleum Company Limited 20% working interest) was spudded on August […]
Venezuela Using Invisible Oil Tankers To Skirt Sanctions
(Oilprice.com, Irina Slav, 16.Nov.2019) â U.S. sanctions on Venezuela have been squeezing the life out of its economy in an attempt to remove the government of Nicolas Maduro from power, but so far those sanctions havenât been entirely successful. The reason: Venezuela is still exporting oil. So far in November, […]
Ecopetrol and Oxy Finalize Permian Deal
(Ecopetrol, 13.Nov.2019) â Ecopetrol S.A. completed the joint venture transaction announced on 31 Jul. 2019. Through this deal, the company and Occidental Petroleum Corp agreed to form a strategic alliance or joint venture for the development of unconventional reservoirs in approximately 97,000 acres of the Permian Basin in the state […]
Clorox And Enel Green Power Ink Deal
(Clorox, 13.Nov.2019) â The Clorox Company and a wholly owned subsidiary of Enel Green Power North America signed a 12-year, 70 megawatt (MW) virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) for the purchase of renewable energy beginning in 2021. Representing about half of Clorox’s 100% renewable electricity goal in its operations in […]
Rosneft Grapples With Unsold Venezuelan Oil
(Michelle Wiese Bockmann, 12.Nov.2019) â Rosneftâs trading arm is vital to Venezuelan crude sales as Chinese refiners shun direct purchases since the US administration tightened sanctions in August. Instead Venezuela to China shipments arrive via Malaysia, through ship-to-ship transfers undertaken from Rosneft-controlled tankers CRUDE exports from Venezuela have dwindled to […]
Ecopetrol Finds Oil In GOM Deep Waters
(Ecopetrol, 7.Nov.2019) â Ecopetrol reports that its US subsidiary, Ecopetrol America LLC, has participated in the drilling of the Esox-1 well under a Farmout Agreement with Chevron U.S.A. Inc. The well which resulted in the discovery of light oil is located in Mississippi Canyon Block No. 726 in the deep […]
Frontera Announces Quarterly Dividend
(Frontera, 7.Nov.2019) â Frontera Energy Corporation announces that its Board of Directors has declared a dividend of C$0.205 per common share, which will be paid on or about January 17, 2020 to shareholders of record at the close of business on January 3, 2020. The company’s Board of Directors dividend […]
McDermott Appoints Chris Krummel As CFO
(McDermott, 5.Nov.2019) â McDermott International, Inc. announced appointment of Chris Krummel as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Krummel joined McDermott in 2016 and previously served as the company’s Global Vice President, Finance and Chief Accounting Officer. He replaces Stuart Spence, who has resigned from McDermott to […]
Flexential Expands To LatAm With Seaborn
(Flexential, 4.Nov.2019) â Flexential announced it is expanding its FlexAnywhere offering, providing customers direct access to Seaborn Networks’ transoceanic platform for the low latency, high-speed, 72-terabits-per-second seamless connection to Latin America. The Latin American subsea cable, called Seabras-1, spans from New York/New Jersey, U.S. to Sao Palo, Brazil. Via this […]
Hess Announces Oil Find At Esox-1 GOM Well
(Hess, 29.Oct.2019) â Hess Corporation announced an oil discovery at the Esox-1 exploration well located in Mississippi Canyon Block No. 726 in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. Esox-1 was drilled in 4,609 feet (1,405 meters) of water and encountered approximately 191 net feet (58 meters) of high quality oil bearing […]
CITGO: Worth Protecting?
(AFPM, Chet Thompson, 22.Oct.2019) â In the last ten years the fracking revolution has led to amazing growth and vastly increased energy security for the United States. Weâve gone from the number-one refined product importer in the world to the number-one exporter. Workers in American refineries are fueling the country […]
Ali Moshiri Seeks $500mn For Post-Sanctions Venezuela
(Reuters, Jennifer Hiller, 21.Oct.2019) â The former chief of Chevron Corpâs Latin American operations is moving to raise $500 million from big financial firms to invest in Venezuela once U.S. sanctions are eventually lifted, confident that political change will come and that foreign investment will be needed to boost sagging […]
OFAC Gives Nynas AB Time
(Sputnik, 18.Oct.2019) â The United States has extended a license that allows certain transactions with PDVSA’s joint venture Nynas AB despite US sanctions on the Venezuelan oil sector, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a notice on its website on Wednesday. “All transactions and activities […]
Guaido Team Proposes Truce To PDVSA Bondholders
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga and Corina Pons, 18.Oct2019) â Venezuela’s opposition last week sent holders of state oil company PDVSA’s 2020 bond a proposal to suspend legal actions for 90 days, the latest maneuver to avoid losing U.S. refiner Citgo, three sources familiar with the talks said. The investors have not […]
Chevron To Receive Venezuelan Oil Cargo
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 18.Oct.2019) â U.S. oil major Chevron Corp is scheduled this month to receive at least one cargo of crude oil from sanctioned Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA, according to an internal PDVSA document. If the loading proceeds, it would be the first shipment assigned to Chevron since […]
Braskem Launches I’m Greenâą
(Braskem, 17.Oct.2019) â Braskem, the largest polyolefins producer in the Americas and leading producer of biopolymers in the world, today formally launched its new I’m greenâą Recycled polypropylene (PP) in the United States. The roll-out of Braskem’s new I’m greenâą Recycled polypropylene represents one of the first new offerings under […]
Chevron Venezuela’s Exit To Aid Putin’s Russia
(S&P Global Platts, Brian Scheid and Rosemary Griffin, 17.Oct.2019) â Chevron is pushing back against the Trump administration’s plans to let the company’s Venezuela sanctions waiver expire, arguing such a move could ultimately drive oil production up, bolstering both the Maduro regime and Russia’s standing in the global market. “It’d […]
Maduro Rivals Seek Break With Citgo
(Argus, 17.Oct.2019) â Venezuela’s main political opposition is pressing for a deal with foreign bondholders to suspend a looming $914mn obligation that is tethered to coveted US refining assets. The high-stakes standoff over the PdV 2020 bond is closely watched by a myriad of other creditors, including Russia and China […]
Guaido Camp Declares PDVSA 2020 Bond Void
(venezuelanalysis.com, 16.Oct.2019) â Venezuelaâs CITGO could be seized by creditors. Venezuelaâs opposition-held National Assembly (AN) passed a resolution Tuesday branding the countryâs 2020 PDVSA bond âinvalid.â The move comes on the eve of a hefty US $913 million payment to creditors due October 28. Non-payment could mean the loss of […]
Venezuela’s Prize Oil Asset May Soon Be Up For Grabs
(Oilprice.com, Tsvetana Paraskova, 16.Oct.2019) â Venezuelaâs opposition is getting ready to file within days a lawsuit in the United States seeking to prevent bond holders of Venezuelan state oil firm PDVSA from going after shares in its U.S. subsidiary Citgo over an expected PDVSA bond default this month, Reuters reports, […]
Venezuelaâs Opposition Snubs PDVSA Bondholders
(Argus, 15.Oct.2019) â Venezuela’s opposition-controlled National Assembly signaled to bondholders today that it will not honor a $914mn principal and interest obligation because it says the debt issuance is unconstitutional. The controversial PdV 2020 bond issued by Venezuela’s national oil company PdV is collateralized by the firm’s US refining unit […]
Venezuelan Oil Output Could Be Halved Without Chevron Waiver
(S&P Global Platts, Brian Scheid, 14.Oct.2019) â Venezuelan oil production, already averaging a historic low near 600,000 b/d, could quickly plummet below 300,000 b/d if the Trump administration allows a waiver for Chevron and four US oil services companies to expire next week, analysts told S&P Global Platts. “I think […]
Chevron Grabs 5 Blocks In ANP’s 16th Bid Round
(Chevron, 10.Oct.2019) â Chevron Brasil welcomes the results of Brazilâs 16th Bid Round. We are pleased to be part of the following five successful consortia, including two as the operator: — Block S-M-766: Chevron holds an operating 40% interest in this block located in the Santos Basin, along with partners […]
ANP 16th Round Attracts Record R$8.9bn Signings
(ANP, 10.Oct.2019) â The 16th Bidding Round collected R$ 8.9 billions in signature bonuses, a record value among the concession rounds already held in Brazil. The round will generate investments of at least R$ 1.58 billion in the first phase of the concession contracts alone (exploration phase). Twelve of the […]
Reliance To Resume Venezuela Oil Loadings
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 9.Oct.2019) â Indian refiner Reliance Industries Ltd is scheduled to resume loading Venezuelan crude in October after a four-month pause, according to sources and internal documents from PDVSA seen by Reuters, a move that could help Venezuela’s state-run company drain its large oil inventories. The United States in January […]
Aruba Ends Citgo Deal
(Reuters, 9.Oct.2019) â Aruba on Wednesday reached an agreement with U.S. based Citgo Petroleum Corp to end its contract to refurbish and operate the island’s refinery, a statement from the island’s prime minister said. The Caribbean nation plans to pursue outside candidates to take over the 209,000 barrel per day […]
CITGO Key To Trumpâs Venezuela Strategy
(Forbes, Ariel Cohen, 8.Oct.2019) â At last monthâs United Nations General Assembly, the Lima Group, the U.S.-led coalition of 14 countries in the Americas seeking a solution to the Venezuela crisis, and the International Contact Group, reaffirmed its commitment to democracy and the rule of law. The human rights record […]
Citgo Bolsters Legal Defenses With Former BP Lawyer
(Reuters, 8.Oct.2019) â Citgo Petroleum Corp this week named a former BP lawyer to take on the companyâs top legal job as it faces creditors seeking to seize shares in the U.S.-based refiner over parent PDVSAâs debts. Jack Lynch, who spent 18 years working for BP in Houston, London and […]
Energy Cos Caught In Spat Over Venezuela Sanctions
(Chron, Sergio Chapa, 7.Oct.2019) â Frequent power outages, theft of equipment, a political tug-of-war and billions of dollars in losses would seem to signal to businesses that itâs time to get out of Venezuela. But energy companies with headquarters or major operations in Houston â including the oil major Chevron […]