(Ecopetrol, 18.Aug.2021) — Ecopetrol S.A. (BVC: ECOPETROL; NYSE; EC) announced that the risk rating agency Standard & Poor’s maintained the international long-term rating of Ecopetrol at BB+ and the individual credit rating (Stand Alone) at ‘bbb- ‘, with stable outlook. The agency highlighted the company’s strategic relevance for Colombia and the […]
Guyana, Suriname Eye Further Drilling
(Reuters, 18.Aug.2021) — Guyana and Suriname expect continued exploratory drilling over the next two years by oil majors in their joint offshore basin after a string of recent discoveries, government officials and corporate executives said at a conference on Wednesday. The neighboring South American countries, along with Brazil, attracted the […]
Jagdeo: Developed Countries Must Help In Climate Fight
(DPI, 18.Aug.2021) — Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo MP, has issued a clarion call for developed countries to pull their weight in the fight against climate change. The Vice President made this appeal Tuesday night, during his feature address to the Rice University: Baker Institute Centre for Energy Studies with […]
Guyana Eyes Oil Developments, Rising Per Capita Income
(Energy Analytics Institute, 17.Aug.2021) — Guyana’s Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo took part in the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) held in Houston between 16-19 August 2021. What follows are brief details from his discussion on 17 August during a panel entitled “Guyana: An Emerging Oil Industry in the Context of Net […]
Guyana Seeks Higher Royalties
(Reuters, 17.Aug.2021) — Guyana aims to increase its oil royalties and revamp other contract terms as part of a new profit-sharing agreement (PSA) for future crude and gas projects now in its draft stage, the South American nation’s vice president said on Tuesday. The tiny country has become one of […]
Shale Oil Investments May Be Protected From Nationalization
(Baker Institute, 17.Aug.2021) — Shale oil’s short-cycle production protects foreign investors from the risk of expropriation — government taking private property for public use — providing an opportunity for the increasingly risk-averse global petroleum industry, according to a new report. The paper, “Shale Renders the ‘Obsolescing Bargain’ Obsolete: Political risk […]
Citgo Returns To Profitability
(Citgo, 16.Aug.2021) — Citgo Petroleum Corporation reported its second quarter 2021 performance results, including net income of $3mn, EBITDA1 of $214mn and adjusted EBITDA2 of $208mn, marking the company’s first profitable quarter since the third quarter of 2019. “Given the multiple challenges we have faced during 2020 and the first half […]
Orvana Reports El Valle Plant Stoppage
(Orvana, 16.Aug.2021) — Orvana Minerals Corp. (TSX: ORV) announces that a rock fall has occurred at a legacy open pit wall at El Valle. The fallen material impacted the east sector of the Tailings Storage Facility (“TSF”), without structural damages. No individuals were harmed, and no environmental damages have been […]
Ecopetrol Gets Go Ahead For $4bn Loan For ISA Acquisition
(Ecopetrol, 16.Aug.2021) — Ecopetrol S.A. (BVC: ECOPETROL;NYSE: EC) informs that by means of Resolution 1928 of 13 August 2021, the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (MHCP) authorized the company to enter into an external credit loan with international banks for up to four billion dollars ($4bn), whose exclusive purpose […]
Cox Energy Establishes IR Vice Presidency Office
(Cox Energy, 16.Aug.2021) — Cox Energy América, S.A.B. DE C.V. (BIVA: COXA *, BMV: COXA *), the region’s only listed pure play photovoltaic renewable solar energy company, announces as part of its market communication strategy, and following best corporate practices, the establishment of the Investor Relations Vice President position, headed […]
Guyana-Suriname Basin OTC2021 Technical Panel Summary
(Energy Analytics Institute, 16.Aug.2021) — Executives with ExxonMobil provided technical details of the company’s initial, current and planned activities in Guyana. What follows are excerpts from their presentations during the Offshore Technology Conference 2021 (16-19 August) in Houston, Texas. ExxonMobil, Audrey Varga — Outline of Guyana-Suriname exploration history: Standard Oil, […]
Guyana Contingent Attends #OTC2021
(DPI, 16.Aug.2021) — This is Guyana’s second time participating at this international conference in Houston, Texas. The Government of Guyana through GO-Invest, is collaborating with several private sector organisations and businesses which comprises its delegation at OTC 2021. The contingent comprises: Vice President, Hon. Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo; Minister of Foreign […]
LatAm Briefs: YPF Debt, Petrobras Taxes
(Energy Analytics Institute, 13.Aug.2021) — Energy briefs from the Latin America and Caribbean region including: YPF reducing its total debt, Petrobras’ tax collections to the government, Exxon’s Liza Unity FPSO prepares to leave Singapore, National Enterprises Limited (NEL) writes down the fair value of its indirect stake in Atlantic LNG […]
Sempra Launches Offer For Remaining IEnova Shares
(Sempra, 12.Aug.2021) — Sempra (NYSE: SRE) (BMV: SRE) announced that it has launched a tender offer to purchase for cash the 3.6% of the outstanding shares of IEnova (Infraestructura Energética Nova, S.A.B de C.V.) that are not owned by Sempra. This cash tender offer follows Sempra’s completed exchange offer for […]
MPC Energy Starts Construction Of PV Plant In Colombia
(MPC Energy, 12.Aug.2021) — MPC Energy Solutions (MPCES) and Akuo Energy commenced construction of Parque Solar Planeta Rica, a solar photovoltaic (PV) project in Colombia. The project is a joint venture with Akuo Energy, a leading French developer and operator of renewable energy projects. “The start of the construction of […]
The Energy Basket: A Non-Binary Approach to the Energy Transitions
(The Way Ahead, Fernando C. Hernandez, 12.Aug.2021) — I became a proponent of the energy basket concept, while deployed offshore, as it became apparent that an ROV’s upward and downward movement (heave) could be harnessed as a renewable energy to power subsea equipment. In this article, I will share my […]
Venezuela Negotiations By Eric Farnsworth
(AS/COA, 12.Aug.2021) — A new round of negotiations is set to start on Friday, August 13, in Mexico between representatives of the de facto regime of Nicolás Maduro and the interim administration of Juan Guaidó. This is not the first time negotiations have been attempted, and expectations for meaningful democratic progress are modest. AS/COA Vice President Eric Farnsworth breaks down […]
Pemex Halts Drilling At Valeriana
(By Platts, Sheky Espejo, 12.Aug.2021) — Mexico’s state oil company Pemex has stopped drilling Valeriana 1, a high-temperature high-pressure appraisal well located in the state of Tabasco, after new interpretation of seismic studies led to a drastic modification in the design of the wells, the National Hydrocarbons Commission said Aug. […]
Guyana Creating New Authority For Oil Sector
(Argus, 12.Aug.2021) — Guyana plans to create a new authority by the end of 2021 to regulate its growing hydrocarbon revenues and allow orderly and transparent management and development of the sector, President Irfaan Ali said. The petroleum commission will also insulate the sector “from undue political interference” and remove […]
Ecopetrol To Pay $3.7bn For ISA Stake
(Ecopetrol, 11.Aug.2021) — Ecopetrol S.A. (BVC: ECOPETROL;NYSE: EC) informs that on 11 August 2021, it signed the Inter-administrative Share Purchase Agreement with the Colombian Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (MHCP), through which the company agreed to acquire 569,472,561 shares of Interconexión Eléctrica S.A. ESP (ISA), equivalent to 51.4% of […]
Now Activists Want BHP To Keep Its Fossil Fuels
(Bloomberg, 11.Aug.2021) — BHP Group, the world’s top miner, should abandon plans for multi-billion dollar sales of fossil fuels assets and instead responsibly close down the operations, according to an environmental campaign group. A proposal tabled on behalf of about 100 small investors by Market Forces, which coordinates groups of shareholders […]
Oceaneering Inks Survey Deal With EEPGL
(Oceaneering, 10.Aug.2021) — Oceaneering International has been awarded a contract from Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) to provide two surveys offshore Guyana. The contract award covers a towed and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) geophysical survey and a shallow geotechnical survey off the coast of Guyana. Oceaneering will use […]
T&T’s Plastic Waste Twice Int’l Average
(Trinidad Express, 10.Aug.2021) — Improper waste disposal may be one of the reasons for the major flooding that wreaked havoc in north-west Trinidad and Tobago last Tuesday afternoon. According to the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management, oftentimes, garbage that is not properly disposed enters into drainage systems and clogs […]
Venezuela’s Opposition Targets ‘Narrow’ Chance To Tame Maduro
(By Ft, Michael Stott, 10.Aug.2021) — Once Venezuela’s most famous political prisoner, he is best known for escaping from house arrest and appearing outside a Caracas military base in an attempt to start an uprising against the country’s leftist president, Nicolás Maduro. But the 2019 rebellion failed and Leopoldo López […]
Should NGC Buy Train 1?
(Trinidad Express, 10.Aug.2021) — In its 2021 annual report, the T&T Government’s investment holdings company, National Enterprises Ltd (NEL) states that “the full impairment of the Train 1 plant at Atlantic LNG” resulted in the fair value of NEL’s shareholding in Train 1 being written down from the value of […]
Citgo Names Mark Holstein New General Counsel
(Citgo, 10.Aug.2021) — Citgo Petroleum Corporation announced the appointment of Mark Holstein as the company’s new General Counsel, overseeing all aspects of the company’s legal strategy and material litigation, while providing legal counsel and advising senior management. Holstein will report directly to Jack Lynch, Vice President of Legal and Government […]
Guyana Opts Against LT Supply Deal With India
(Reuters, 10.Aug.2021) — Guyana’s Natural Resources Ministry said on Monday the country earned nearly $80 million from a July crude cargo sold to an Indian refiner, the highest figure since exports began in early 2020, though an official ruled out a long-term supply deal. Guyana sold the cargo of 1,047,820 […]
LatAmBriefs: TGI Eyes Buenaventura LNG Import Project
(Energy Analytics Institute, 9.Aug.2021) — Energy briefs from the Latin America and Caribbean region including: Argentina fining Edesur and Edenor; Transportadora de Gas Internacional (TGI) eyes developing Colombia’s second liquefied natural gas (LNG) import project in Buenaventura; and more from Ecuador, Mexico and Venezuela. Argentina — Argentina’s National Electricity Regulatory […]
María Corina Machado Talks About Democratic Regression
(Fundación Libertad y Desarrollo, 9.Aug.2021) — The president of Fundación Libertad y Desarrollo, Dionisio Gutiérrez, spoke with the leader of the Venezuelan opposition and National Coordinator of Vente Venezuela, María Corina Machado, about the fight for democratic, liberal and republican values in the region. On the decline of liberal democracies […]
Alarm Over Spill Into The Gulf Of Paria
(Trinidad Express, 9.Aug.2021) — The Environmental Management Authority and Paria Fuel Trading Company Ltd yesterday confirmed an oil spill in the Gulf of Paria. Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS) corporate secretary Gary Aboud boarded a pirogue yesterday and went to the scene of the spill. He posted several […]
Colombia To Leverage Coal, Gas For Blue H2 By 2030
(Argus, 9.Aug.2021) — Colombia has issued a draft roadmap for hydrogen development that would start by leveraging the country’s coal and natural gas resources for “blue” production before moving into green hydrogen derived from renewable energy in the next decade. “Blue hydrogen is a low-emissions alternative for the progressive transition […]
Guyana Receives Payment For 7th Oil Lift
(MNR, 9.Aug.2021) — In keeping with the current administration’s commitment to transparency and accountability within the Petroleum Sector, the Government Guyana through the Ministry of Natural Resources is pleased to announce that the payment for Guyana’s seventh oil lift was received into the Natural Resources Fund Account. On July 3rd, […]
Three Studies That Made The Difference
(Stabroek News, 8.Aug.2021) — To recap, this long-running series of Sunday Stabroek columns focusing on Guyana’s emergent oil and gas sector commenced just four months short of five years ago; on September 4, 2016! Introduction To recap, this long-running series of Sunday Stabroek columns focusing on Guyana’s emergent oil and […]
Former Trinidad Oil Minister Ramnarine Comments On S&P Downgrade
(Energy Analytics Institute, 6.Aug.2021) — Trinidad and Tobago’s former energy minister Kevin Ramnarine commented on the recent downgrade by Standard and Poor’s rating agency. What follows below are his comments from a recent LinkedIn post: “T&T has been downgraded by S&P four times in the last six years. When we […]
LatAm Briefs: Raizen IPO, Bolivian Gas
(Energy Analytics Institute, 5.Aug.2021) — Energy briefs from the Latin America and Caribbean region including: Argentina’s YPF Sociedad Anónima repurchasing Class XII Notes, YPFB and Ambar Energía Ltda. inking a gas deal and Shell Brazil Holding B.V. marking the start of trading in shares of Raízen S.A., the renewable energy […]
APA Reports 2Q:21 Net Income of $388mn
(APA, 5.May.2021) — APA Corporation (Nasdaq: APA) announced its financial and operational results for the first-quarter 2021. APA reported net income attributable to common stock of $388mn, or $1.02 per diluted share. When adjusted for items that impact the comparability of results, APA’s first-quarter earnings were $346mn, or $0.91 per […]
Raízen IPO To Accelerate Growth
(Shell, 5.Aug.2021) — Shell Brazil Holding B.V., a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc marks the start of trading in shares of Raízen S.A., the renewable energy joint venture between Shell and Brazilian energy company Cosan, on the São Paulo Stock Exchange (B3), following the successful execution of an initial […]
Ecopetrol’s 2Q:21 Earnings Call Transcript
(Motley Fool, 4.Aug.2021) — Colombia’s state oil giant Ecopetrol hosted its second quarter 2021 conference call to discuss operational and financial details. What follows is the transcript of the call. Contents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks: Operator Good morning. My name is Hilda, and I will […]
Petrobras Hires JPMorgan To Sell Braskem Stake
(Reuters, 5.Aug.2021) — Brazilian state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PETR4.SA) has hired JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) as adviser to sell its stake in petrochemical company Braskem SA (BRKM5.SA), three sources familiar with the matter said. Earlier on Thursday, Petrobras executives said in a conference call with investors that […]
The bpTT Conundrum
(Trinidad Guardian, 4.Aug.2021) — It was in 1973 that the world experienced the first oil-price shock. It was spurred by the Yom Kippur War in the Middle East in which the Americans and other Western countries supported Israel in its war against Egypt and Syria. This led to crude prices […]
Petrobras Beats Estimates
(Reuters, 4.Aug.2021) — Brazil’s Petrobras beat second quarter profit estimates on Wednesday, as higher Brent prices, strong natural gas sales and relatively controlled expenses boosted the company’s bottom line. In an evening securities filing, Petroleo Brasileiro SA, as the company is formally known, reported a quarterly net income of 42.855 […]
NGC, MHTL Ink Gas Supply Contract
(NGC, 4.Aug.2021) — The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (NGC) signed a Consolidated Gas Supply Contract (CGSC) with Methanol Holdings (Trinidad) Limited (MHTL), part of the Proman family of companies. This contract will support operations at the MHTL Methanol Complex, which includes the mega-methanol M5 plant, one […]
Guyana Gets 15 Bids To Market Govt Crude
(Reuters, 4.Aug.2021) — Guyana received bids from 15 different companies aiming to market the government’s share of the crude produced off the South American country’s coast, according to Guyana’s National Procurement and Tender Board Administration website on Wednesday. The government re-launched the search last month after a previous tender was […]
Argentina Local Debt Rollover Flops
(Bloomberg, 4.Aug.2021) — Investors sent a warning message to Argentina’s Treasury on Tuesday night — don’t expect us to finance the government’s increased spending ahead of November’s midterm elections unless interest rates go up. The Treasury managed to roll over just 146.3 billion peso ($1.5 billion) in local notes in […]
LatAm Briefs: Ecopetrol Results, Guyana Oil Lift
(Energy Analytics Institute, 3.Aug.2021) — Energy briefs from the Latin America and Caribbean region including: New Pacific Metals Corp. commencing a diamond drilling program in Bolivia, Ecopetrol’s strong second quarter results [PDF download], Ecopetrol CEO Felipe Bayón Pardo says company eyeing green hydrogen projects, and Guyana’s most recent one million […]
Ecopetrol Reveals 2Q:21 Results
(Ecopetrol, 3.Aug.2021) — Ecopetrol S.A. (BVC: ECOPETROL;NYSE: EC) announced the Ecopetrol Group’s financial results for the second quarter and the first half of 2021. In words of Felipe Bayón Pardo, CEO of Ecopetrol: The strength of Ecopetrol Group’s results in the quarter and year to date, despite a challenging situation […]
Argus Launches LPG Freight Prices
(Argus, 27.Jul.2021) — Global energy and commodity price reporting agency Argus has launched 10 new freight price assessments for tankers transporting liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). These prices are a response to market demand for greater transparency in the growing and increasingly complex global trade in LPG, which comprises butane and […]
Ecopetrol Q2 Profit Soars To $951mn
(Reuters, 3.Aug.2021) — Colombia’s majority state-owned oil company Ecopetrol’s second-quarter net profit soared to 3.72 trillion pesos ($951 million), boosted by strong sales, the company said on Tuesday, compared with 25 billion pesos in the year-earlier period. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose to 9.43 trillion pesos, […]
NGC Inks Zandolie Field Gas Sales Contract
(NGC, 4.Aug.2021) — DeNovo Energy Limited and The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC) signed a Zandolie Field development Gas Sales Contract (GSC) for commercialisation of the Zandolie Field located in Block 1(a). The Zandolie Field Development project will be DeNovo’s second offshore instalment following the Iguana field […]
US Still Shows Strong Appetite For Russian Oil
(S&P Global, 3.Aug.2021) — The US is still showing strong demand for imports of Russian crude and fuel oil feedstocks, which analysts expect to continue as long as the economy is recovering and US sanctions keep Venezuelan crude off the market. The trend comes at a tricky time in US-Russia […]