(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 28.Aug.2018) — Venezuela’s main oil port of Jose is operating partially following a weekend tanker collision that halted one of its three docks, curtailing state-run PDVSA’s ability to export upgraded crude and receive imported diluents, three sources with knowledge of the incident said on Tuesday. PDVSA has […]
Pemex Insider Destined for Key Post Under AMLO
(Bloomberg, Amy Stillman, 28.Aug.2018) — Mexico President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will name Fluvio Ruiz Alarcon as Petroleos Mexicanos’s next exploration and production chief, according to two people with knowledge of the plans. Ruiz Alarcon, a former independent adviser to Pemex, will take over on Dec. 1, when Lopez Obrador […]
Argentina Re-ignites Labor Deal to Spur Investment in Vaca Muerta
(Reuters, Eliana Raszewski, 28.Aug.2018) — Argentina relaunched a one-year-old agreement between the government, companies and workers on Tuesday to drive competition and spur development in the Vaca Muerta shale play, the government said in a statement. The original agreement, signed just over a year ago, sought to boost production by […]
Trinidad Imports 40% of Oil from Russia
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 27.Aug.2018) —Trinidad and Tobago is relying on Russia as its main source of imported crude oil. Between January and June 2018, the small twin-island country imported over 15 million barrels of crude oil from the [Petrotrin] refinery. Of that, 40% of the crude oil imports […]
Renaissance Oil Reports 2Q:18 Results
(Renaissance Oil Corp., 27.Aug.2018) — Renaissance Oil Corp. reported second quarter 2018 results. All dollar figures are Canadian dollars, unless otherwise noted. SECOND QUARTER 2018 HIGHLIGHTS — Revenue in Q2 2018 reached a company record of $7.0 million, an increase of 40% compared with the previous quarter, and higher by […]
Venezuela Gas Price Deal Competitive—Khan
(Trinidad Guardian, 27.Aug.2018) — Government is giving no details on the pricing structure this country will pay for gas from the Dragon Field under the agreement signed with Venezuela on Saturday, but Energy Minister Franklin Khan is assuring that the pricing structure agreed to was competitive and followed “months of […]
Renaissance Oil Advancing at Amatitlán block in Mexico
(Renaissance, 27.Aug.2018) — Renaissance Oil Corp. announced that in the second quarter of 2018 it saw continued oil field development with its partner LUKOIL, at the Amatitlán block in Veracruz, Mexico. During the quarter, six additional wells were drilled intersecting the shallow Tertiary aged Chicontepec formations. To date sixteen Chicontepec […]
Atlas Renewable Energy, Bancomext Closing Long-Term Financing
(Atlas Renewable Energy, 27.Aug.2018) — Atlas Renewable Energy and Banco de Comercio Exterior (Bancomext) announced the signing of a long-term financing agreement for Atlas Renewable Energy’s solar power plant in Mexico, located in the state of Hidalgo. Bancomext will provide $88.5 million dollars to finance the construction of the project, […]
Mexico’s New President To Deal Blow To Oil Industry
(Oilprice.com, Nick Cunningham, 26.Aug.2018) — Mexico will likely halt oil auctions for at least two years, dealing a blow to its oil industry. Mexico’s president-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) will reportedly suspend oil auctions for at least two years, according to the Wall Street Journal, with some experts believing […]
Dragon Gas Deal May Be ‘Political Gimmicks’
(Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, Richardson Dhalai, 26.Aug.2018) — The Dragon gas deal may be “public relations and political gimmicks” which may not benefit TT. That’s the view of Pointe-a-Pierre MP David Lee who, in a media release yesterday, cited the 2016 trade deal between TT and Venezuela saying some local […]
Five Things About T&T, Venezuela’s Dragon Gas Deal
(Loop News, 26.Aug.2018) — On August 25, 2018, an historic agreement was made between Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro for access the Venezuela’s Dragon Field. Here are five things to know about the Dragon field gas deal: Dragon will produce 150 million cubic feet per […]
Pemex Industrial Transformation to Challenge Cofece Fine
(Pemex, 26.Aug.2018) — As of today, the Commission of Economic Competition (acronym in Spanish, Cofece) published the fine imposed on Pemex TRI for over 418 million pesos, for allegedly having failed to comply with one of the obligations acquired in October 2016, to restore competition in marketing and distributing 7 […]
PDVSA, Citgo Evaluating Aruba Gas Plan
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 25.Aug.2018) — Venezuela is evaluating a plan to implement a natural gas project with Aruba. Officials from Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA, and its refining arm Citgo Petroleum Corporation continue to evaluate the potential of such a project that would imply a gas interconnection between […]
Aruba’s San Nicolás Refinery to Take Faja Oil
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 25.Aug.2018) — Valero’s old Aruba refinery will be revitalized as an upgrader. PDVSA announced the San Nicolás Refinery located in Aruba will be converted into an upgrader in order to process extra-heavy oil from Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez Orinoco Heavy Oil Belt, also known as the […]
Trinidad Inks Gas Deal With Venezuela To Continue LNG Exports
(Bloomberg, Ryan Collins and Kelly Gilblom, 25.Aug.2018) — Trinidad and Tobago will continue to ship super-chilled natural gas all over the world, with a little help from Venezuela. President Nicolas Maduro and Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Keith Rowley signed a deal Saturday where Trinidad will purchase gas from Venezuela’s […]
Golar Power Affiliate CELSE Closes $1.3 Bln Financing
(Golar LNG, 25.Aug.2018) — Golar Power Limited’s affiliate, CELSE, closed a $1.34 billion financing facility for the Sergipe project. On April 19, CELSE, the 50% Golar Power owned project company responsible for delivering the Sergipe I power project, executed a $1.34 billion non-recourse project finance facility. Excluding the FSRU facility, […]
Fuel Theft Rate Lowers in the State of Guanajuato
(Pemex, 25.Aug.2018) — During a meeting of the Guanajuato Coordination Group, Governor Miguel Márquez Márquez and the CEO of Petróleos Mexicanos, Carlos Treviño Medina, assessed the measures implemented to date by the three levels of government to fight fuel theft in the state, which has resulted in a lower crime […]
PetroTal Conducting Test at Bretaña Oil Field in Peru
(PetroTal Corp., 25.Aug.2018) — The company placed the Bretaña oil field online at approximately 1,000 b/d during the initial testing and commissioning phase. To date, the well has accumulated approximately 40,000 barrels with no sign of water produced from the aquifer. The oil is being sold at the local Iquitos […]
Venezuela to Send Dragón Gas to Trinidad
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 25.Aug.2018) — Venezuela will send its Dragón field natural gas to Trinidad for processing. That’s according to a deal signed today in Caracas between the governments of Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela, reported Venezuela’s Ministry of Petroleum in a series of tweets. The countries were […]
MEEI Updates on Status of Trinidad Energy Infrastructure
(MEEI, 24.Aug.2018) — The Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries (MEEI) has been monitoring the impacts of the 6.9 magnitude earthquake which occurred on Tuesday 21st August, 2018 at 5:31 p.m. that reportedly caused some property damage across the country. Reports from the energy sector companies have, so far, indicated […]
Golar Applies for FSRU Permits in Brazil
(TO&GY, 24.Aug.2018) — Offshore midstream company Golar LNG has started the process to acquire an environmental permit for its Terminal Gas Sul (TGS) project in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, international media reported Thursday. The project, which entails a new pipeline and FSRU capable of storing 160,000 cubic metres […]
PentaNova Energy Provides Financial, Ops Update
(PentaNova Energy Corp., 24.Aug.2018) — PentaNova Energy Corp. filed its financial and operating results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2018. All dollar values in this news release and the Company’s financial disclosures are in United States dollars, unless otherwise stated. All production figures are measured in […]
Big Oil Asks Gov’t to Protect it from Climate Change
(AP) — As the United States plans new defences against the more powerful storms and higher tides expected from climate change, one project stands out: an ambitious proposal to build a nearly 60-mile ‘spine’ of concrete seawalls, earthen barriers, floating gates and steel levees on the Texas Gulf Coast. Like […]
Gas Producers Counting on Mexico Have Worries
(Houston Chronicle, Katherine Blunt, 24.Aug.2018) — For years, U.S. producers have counted on Mexico to buy enormous quantities of natural gas from the prolific shale fields in West Texas and elsewhere. The fracking boom has given rise to massive pipeline projects to carry that gas across the border, where energy […]
Trinidad and Venezuela to Sign Gas Agreement
(CMC, 24.Aug.2018) — Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley will lead a delegation to Venezuela tomorrow to sign an agreement for the development of the across border gas from the Venezuelan Dragon Gas Field, according to an official statement issued here. The statement from the Office of the Prime Minister noted […]
Ecopetrol to Focus Spending on Drilling: CEO
(Reuters, Devika Krishna Kumar, 24.Aug.2018) — Colombia’s state-run oil company Ecopetrol SA will focus spending for the rest of the year on increased drilling activity and securing operational licenses, its chief executive said on Friday. Spending delays earlier this year will make it harder for the company to achieve its […]
Rosneft May Challenge Crystallex Claim To Citgo Shares
(Oilprice.com, Irina Slav, 23.Aug.2018) — Rosneft has asked a U.S. federal court to establish “a robust appraisal and sale process” of Citgo shares following Canadian miner Crystallex’ win at court against the parent company of Citgo, PDVSA, Argus Media reports citing documents submitted by Rosneft to court. “Such a course […]
PetroTal Reports 2Q:18 Financial Results
(PetroTal Corp., 23.Aug.2018) — PetroTal Corp. provided a summary of its financial and operating results as of June 30, 2018. Selected financial and operational information is outlined below and should be read in conjunction with the company’s unaudited consolidated financial statements, and management’s discussion and analysis (MD&A) for the quarter […]
Oil Auction from Brazil Transfer-of-Rights Unlikely in 2018
(Reuters, 23.Aug.2018) — A Brazilian auction of rights to develop additional oil-producing areas in the country’s so-called transfer-of-rights region is unlikely this year, Brazil’s Deputy Mining and Energy Minister Marcio Felix said on Tuesday. The government in 2010 transferred to state-run oil company Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., known as Petrobras, rights […]
Electric Stations Rising in Mexico
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 22.Aug.2018) – From 2015 to July 2018, the number of recharging stations for electric vehicles, or electric stations, has grown by almost a multiple of 13 times, revealed the Electric Sector Energy Saving Program (PAESE by its Spanish acronym). In 2015 the total recharging stations […]
AMLO Eyes Mexican Oil Output at 2.5 MMb/d
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 22.Aug.2018) – Mexico’s President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced plans to boost Mexico’s crude oil production to 2.5 million barrels per day (MMb/d) by 2021 from almost 1.9 million today. López said the plan was to boost Mexico’s production by 600,000 barrels per day during […]
Petrobras to Start Replan Refinery Reopen in 48 Hours
(Reuters, 22.Aug.2018) — Brazil’s state-run oil company Petróleo Brasileiro SA may begin procedures to reopen its largest refinery, closed after an explosion and fire, in 48 hours, Gustavo Marsaioli, a spokesman for the oil workers’ union, said on Wednesday. Marsaioli said Petrobras intends to reopen the Paulinia refinery, known as […]
BHP’s Bongos 2 Well Encounters Hydrocarbons
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky, 22.Aug.2018) – The well encountered hydrocarbons in Block TTDAA 14. Trinidad and Tobago’s former Energy Minister Kevin Ramnarine revealed the details in a tweet. “I am encouraged by the results of the T&T deepwater campaign. Just received the news that BHP’s 4th well (Bongos 2) […]
Exec Pleads in $1.2 Bln Venezuelan Money-Laundering scheme
(AP, 22.Aug.2018) — A former Swiss bank executive has pleaded guilty to his role in a $1.2 billion money-laundering scheme involving Venezuela’s state-run oil and natural gas company. Federal court records show that 44-year-old Matthias Krull pleaded guilty in Miami federal court on Wednesday to conspiracy to commit money laundering. […]
U.S. Co. Wins Contract for Mexico LNG Project
(Natural Gas Intelligence, Peter de Montmollin, 22.Aug.2018) — A U.S. company has secured a long-term contract to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import project on the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, a region isolated from the country’s main energy transmission systems. New Fortress Energy (NFE) won a […]
Trinidad Energy Infrastructure Unaffected by Earthquake
(Energy Analytics Institute, Aaron Simonsky, 22.Aug.2018) – Energy infrastructure on the twin-island nation of Trinidad and Tobago appears to be OK after an earthquake yesterday in Venezuela. The August 21, 2018 earthquake hit the northern coast of Venezuela, and was felt in neighboring Colombia, Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana. “Buildings […]
Esmeraldas Refinery Stoppage Delayed Until March 2019
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 22.Aug.2018) – A scheduled 54-day stoppage at the Esmeraldas Refinery for the maintenance of the Non-Catalytic 1 and Catalytic 1 units will be postponed until March 2019. The stoppage, originally planned to commence on August 16, 2018, was postponed by PetroEcuador as the contractor in […]
Ecuador to Save $1 Bln With New Economic Measures
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 21.Aug.2018) – The government of Ecuador aims to save about $1 billion annually with the implementation of new economic measures. The new economic measures, which focus on reduction of bureaucracy, were announced on August 21, 2018 by Ecuador’s President Lenín Moreno and the country’s Economic […]
Oil Workers Support Maduro’s Economic Plans
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 21.Aug.2018) — Oil workers at state oil company PDVSA marched in Caracas and across the country to show their continued support of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro in the aftermath of recent economic announcements by the official. ***
Dragon Gas Deal Finalised Tomorrow
(Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, Carla Bridglal, 21.Aug.2018) – After nearly two years of negotiations between this country and Venezuela the deal that will allow TT to process gas from the Dragon gas field is expected to be finalised tomorrow. A release from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) said […]
Brazil’s Opposing Energy Views
(OilPrice.com, Haley Zaremba, 21.Aug.2018) – Brazil’s energy industry seems to be caught in a moment of deep ambivalence–on one side of the issue, they are breaking records in terms of renewable resources and green energy; on the other, they are pushing hard revive fossil fuels and bring hundreds of thousands […]
Venezuela Takes Action To Stabilize Currency
(ZeroHedge, 21.Aug.2018) – As previewed yesterday, on Monday Venezuela officially slashed five zeros from prices and its currency as part of what has been dubbed one of the greatest currency devaluations in history which slashed the value of the official bolivar by 95 percent, an overhaul that President Nicolas Maduro […]
Magnitude 7.3 Quake in Venezuela Felt in Guyana
(Stabroek News, 21.Aug.2018) – A powerful earthquake has hit the northern coast of Venezuela with a magnitude of 7.3, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It had been originally reported as a 6.8 event but this has since been upgraded to 7.3. Reuters reported that the quake, which was centred […]
PDVSA to Resume Use of Caribbean Terminal Under NuStar Deal
(Reuters, 21.Aug.2018) — Venezuela’s PDVSA and NuStar Energy LP have reached an agreement over outstanding storage fees, allowing the state-run company to resume use of a key storage terminal in the Caribbean, the U.S. energy firm said on Monday. NuStar had suspended PDVSA several times since 2017 from using its […]
Venezuela’s Oil-linked Cryptocurrency Leaves Heads Spinning
(Bloomberg, Andrew Rosati & Fabiola Zerpa, 21.Aug.2018) — Beaten-down Venezuela on Tuesday began confronting a 95 percent currency devaluation and a regimen of economic controls that, after years of hunger and hyperinflation, landed like a hassle rather than a cataclysm. Caracas returned to work after a holiday weekend that saw […]
Pemex Unit Fined $22 Mln by Competition Authority
(Reuters, 21.Aug.2018) — Mexico’s competition authority said on Tuesday that it has fined a unit of state-owned oil company Pemex for presenting an annual compliance report on antimonopoly measures in the recently opened fuel market a year after it was due. The Federal Commission for Economic Competition, or COFECE, fined […]
Pattern Energy Completes Sale of Chilean Ops
(Pattern Energy Group Inc., 21.Aug.2018) – Pattern Energy Group Inc. completed the sale of its operations in Chile, which principally consist of its 81 megawatt owned interest in the 115 MW El Arrayán Wind project, to affiliates of Arroyo Energy Investors for which Pattern Energy received a cash consideration of […]
PDVSA and ConocoPhillips Reach New, Positive Settlement
(Citgo, 21.Aug.2018) — As officially reported by Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA) and ConocoPhillips, the two companies recently reached a settlement agreement resulting from the nationalization of the Hamaca and Petrozuata projects in 2007. As background, ConocoPhillips initiated arbitration before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), demanding that PDVSA pay […]
Petrobras Sees No Fuel Supply Shortage After Replan Fire
(Reuters, 20.Aug.2018) – A director at Brazilian state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA said on Monday a fire at the company’s largest refinery Replan, in the state of São Paulo, is not expected to compromise fuel supplies in the short run. Jorge Celestino Ramos, the company’s refining and natural gas […]
New Fortress to Build $184 Mln LNG Terminal in BCS
(MexicoNow, 20.Aug.2018) – U.S. energy infrastructure developer New Fortress Energy (NFE) announced that it was awarded a long-term contract for the development, construction and operation of a terminal dedicated to the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the port of Pichilingue, Baja California Sur. This contract was the result […]