(Pemex, 24.Jul.2018) â The spread published last night by the company Oro Negro seeks to compensate for a series of strategic mistakes made by that company In connection with the spread that was published on July 19 in the American newspaper The New York Times and signed by Juan P. […]
Colombia Could Create New Oil Bid System
(Reuters, Luis Jaime Acosta, 24.Jul.2018) â Colombia is preparing changes to its bidding process for oil areas in an effort to increase investment and find new reserves, the head of the oil regulator said, after repeated cancellations of its latest oil round. The changes, including contracts adjusted to international crude […]
Former Cerro Negro Workers Still Seek Payment
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 23.Jul.2018) â It has been 11 years and the 7,000 direct and indirect Venezuelan workers of US oil company Exxon Mobil still havenât received their social benefits or other liquidations. Those payment were assumed by the government of late Venezuelan President Hugo ChĂĄvez when his […]
Oil, Electric Sectors to Join Venezuelan Strike
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 23.Jul.2018) â Representatives from trade unions from the oil, electricity, food, education and health sectors announced plans to join a national strike called by opposition political parties, businessmen, unions, churches and other sectors of society in Venezuela. âThe governments of Hugo ChĂĄvez and NicolĂĄs Maduro […]
Union Official Demands Release of PDVSA Workers
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 23.Jul.2018) â The four workers are being held in detention due to accusations they caused a petroleum spill in the Guarapiche River in Monagas state. Their arrest is âthe straw that broke the camel’s back,â reported the daily newspaper El Nacional, citing oil union official […]
Trinidadâs 21st Century Gas Production
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 23.Jul.2018) â It’s said a picture paints a thousand words. This one paints 8.9 billion. From 1908 to 2017, Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) has produced 8.9 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe), announced Strategic Advisor Kevin Ramnarine in a post on LinkedIn. âMost of that […]
Venezuela’s Inflation to Reach 1 Million Percent
(Bloomberg, Andrew Rosati, 23.Jul.2018) â Venezuelaâs inflation will skyrocket to 1 million percent by the end of the year as the government continues to print money to cover a growing budget hole, the International Monetary Fund predicted on Monday. The crisis is comparable to that of Germany in 1923 or […]
Guyanaâs Oil Reserves Are Larger Than Expected
(OilPrice.com, Julianne Geiger, 23.Jul.2018) â Guyanaâs recoverable offshore oil reserves are larger than expectedâby almost a billion barrels, Hess Corp CEO John Hess said in a Monday press release. Gross discovered recoverable resources for Hessâs Stabroek Block has been revised upward to 4 million barrels of oil equivalentâup from the […]
Offshore Guyana Oil and Gas Potential is “Massive”
(UPI, Daniel J. Graeber, 23.Jul.2018) â The size of a reservoir off the coast of Guyana is “massive,” the CEO of Hess Corp. said Monday after a multi-million barrel revision to reserve estimates. Hess and Exxon Mobil on Monday revised the estimate of recoverable reserves at the Stabroek block off […]
Glencore Lands PetroEcuador ‘Spot’ Deal
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 14.Jul.2018) â Glencore Ltd won a recent EP PetroEcuador spot auction, which guarantees the Ecuadorian entity income of $279.3 million. The Swiss company offered the best bid price with a positive differential of $ 1.08 per barrel, reported the daily newspaper El Universo. EP Petroecuador […]
YPFB to Drill $35 Mln MYC-X1 Study Well
(Energy Analytics Institute, Ian Silverman, 23.Jul.2018) â Boliviaâs state oil company Yacimientos PetrolĂferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) plans to drill the Mayaya Centro (MYC-X1) stratigraphic investigative well in 2019 with an estimated investment of $35 million. The well — to be drilled to an approximate depth of 5,500 meters — is […]
Uruguay Electric Grid Reaches Nearly All Citizens
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 23.Jul.2018) â Uruguay is one of the countries in the Latin American region with one of the highest connection of residents to a national energy grid. In this small Southern Cone country, the figures for houses without electricity have dropped to a minimum of 0.3%, […]
Venezuela Thermal Plants at 25-30% of Capacity
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 23.Jul.2018) â Venezuelaâs thermal generation plants in Caracas are only operating at 25% to 30% of capacity, and units 7, 8 and 9 of the Tacoa plant in Vargas state are halted due to damage. The situation in other parts of this OPEC country, such […]
Atlantic Puts Focus on Process Safety
(Trinidad Guardian, 21.Jul.2018) â Atlantic CEO Dr Philip Mshelbila and Rob DiValerio, BPâs Vice PresidentâGroup Process Safety Central, have highlighted the central role of employees in the systems that protect natural gas plants from leaks and other failures. The two headlined the recently concluded 7th annual Process Safety Week, hosted […]
Ex-Venezuelan Energy Official Pleads Guilty
(AP, 20.Jul.2018) â A former official at a state-run electric company in Caracas, Venezuela, pleaded guilty on Monday to money laundering conspiracy relating to an alleged multibillion-dollar graft scheme in the Venezuelan oil industry. Luis Carlos de Leon-Perez, a 42-year-old dual citizen of the United States and Venezuela, admitted his […]
JUTC Hopes to Burn $3b Fuel Bill with LNG
(Jamaica Gleaner, Avia Collinder, 20.Jul.2018) â The LNG gas station to be developed by New Energy Fortress will have the capacity to fuel 25 buses daily, or five times the number of buses designated for the pilot programme to be conducted with the Jamaica Urban Transit Company, JUTC. New Fortress […]
Petrobras says Entorno de SapinhoĂĄ Block Viable
(Reuters, 20.Jul.2018) â Brazilâs state-controlled oil company PetrĂłleo Brasileiro SA said that areas it operates adjacent to the Entorno de SapinhoĂĄ block in the Santos basin are commercially viable, according to a securities filing on Friday. Petrobras has a 45 percent stake in SapinhoĂĄ, while Shell Plc has a 30 […]
Sonnedix Buys 138MW Chilean Solar Power Project
(Power Technology, 20.Jul.2018) â Global independent solar power producer Sonnedix has acquired a 138MW Meseta de Los Andes project in Chile, as part of its move to expand its renewable portfolio. Spread over an area of 250ha, the Meseta de Los Andes project is located 80km from Santiago, which is […]
The $20 Billion Question for Guyana
(The New York Times, Clifford Krauss, 20.Jul.2018) â Guyana is a vast, watery wilderness with only three paved highways. There are a few dirt roads between villages that sit on stilts along rivers snaking through the rain forest. Children go to school in dugout canoes, and play naked in the […]
Why is NGC Still Litigating?
(Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, Richardson Dhalai, 19.Jul.2018) â Former attorney general Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, SC, is questioning why the National Gas Company (NGC) is continuing legal action against SIS and Rainforest, after the Privy Council dismissed NGCâs appeal and ruled in favour of the two companies. Addressing a media conference […]
PetroTrin Achieves $85.6 Mln Profit
(Trinidad Guardian, 19.Jul.2018) â Petrotrin chairman Wilfred Espinet said cost reduction initiatives undertaken by the interim executive team installed at the energy company resulted in a second quarter profit after tax of $85.6 million. âThe installation of a new executive team from the beginning of March and the implementation of […]
Puerto Rico Power Co Names 3rd CEO
(AP, 19.Jul.2018) â Puerto Rico’s governor named a new CEO on Wednesday to lead the US territory’s power company, which has now seen three top executives in two weeks as it struggles with a lack of leadership, bankruptcy and the restoration of electricity to hundreds who remain in the dark […]
Frontera Provides Notice of 2Q:18 Conference Call
(Frontera Energy Corporation, 19.Jul.2018) â Frontera Energy Corporation announces that its second quarter 2018 results will be released after market on Thursday, August 2, 2018 followed by a conference call and webcast for investors and analysts on Friday, August 3, 2018 at 8:00 a.m. (MDT), 9:00 a.m. (GMT-5) and 10:00 […]
Puerto Rico Power Grid Still Unstable
(AP, Michael Weissenstein and Danica Coto, 19.Jul.2018) â Ten months after Hurricane Maria destroyed Puerto Ricoâs electric grid, the local agency responsible for rebuilding it is in chaos and more than $1 billion in federal funds meant to strengthen the rickety system has gone unspent, according to contractors and U.S. […]
Argentina Gas Auctions to Begin in August
(Reuters, 19.Jul.2018) â Argentinaâs electricity generators will be able to begin bidding for their natural gas supply beginning in August, President Mauricio Macri said, as the country gradually moves away from controls on energy markets. The change comes as rising output in the Vaca Muerta shale play moves the country […]
Mexican Group Unhappy About Delayed Auctions
(Reuters, Dave Graham and Ana Isabel Martinez, 19.Jul.2018) â A decision to delay Mexican oil auctions until after the next president takes office does not augur well for opening the countryâs energy sector to private investment, the head of a major business association said on Thursday. The government said on […]
Lee: Thank UNC for BHP gas-fin
(Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, Sean Douglas, 19.Jul.2018) â BHP Billiton’s new gas-find 200 kilometres off the Mayaro coast is due to tax-breaks for exploration given by the former UNC government, Opposition spokesman on energy, David Lee, said in a statement on Thursday. He attributed the find to the “innovation, tremendous […]
BHP Billiton Finds New Gas Offshore T&T
(Trinidad Express, Aleem Khan, 18.Jul.2018) â Australiaâs BHP Billiton found new gas offshore Trinidad, the company confirmed in a statement yesterday. âIn Trinidad and Tobago, following the gas discovery at LeClerc, we commenced Phase 2 of our deepwater exploration drilling campaign to further assess the commercial potential of the Magellan […]
Advantage Lithium Arranges $12 Mln Private Placement
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 18.Jul.2018) â Vancouver, British Columbia-based Advantage Lithium Corp. arranged a private placement of 15,585,000 common shares of Advantage Lithium at a price of $0.77 per Common Share for gross proceeds of $12,000,450. “We are pleased to be adding prominent institutional investors to our shareholder registry […]
Moodyâs Upgrades Ecopetrol Rating
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 18.Jul.2018) â The risk-rating agency Moody’s increased the baseline credit assessment (BCA) two notches, to ba1 from ba3 for Colombiaâs state oil company. The agency said the higher BCA was primarily due to Ecopetrolâs âsolid metrics and progress in its strategy of growth and adding […]
Ecuador Non-Oil Exports Up in 2018
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 18.Jul.2018) â Non-petroleum exports from the South American country rose to $5,484 million from January to May of 2018 compared to $5,149 million in the same period in 2017. Exports of bananas and plantains, aquaculture, fish, flowers, plants, cocoa, processed products and metal mechanics accounted […]
Ecuador Extracting Nearly 523 Mb/d
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 18.Jul.2018) â The South America country is currently extracting nearly 523,000 barrels per day of crude oil, announced the daily newspaper El Universo. Ecuador is seeking to urgently boost output after a June 2018 announcement by OPEC stipulating the increases. ***
ENAP to Spend $65.2 Mln in Ecuador
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 18.Jul.2018) â ENAP announced it will increase investments in three fields it operates in Ecuador. âThe new agreement stipulates an additional investment of $65.2 million for the drilling of 10 wells, which will allow the development of approximately 10.3 million barrels of oil through 2034,” […]
LatAm’s Solar Park Turns Mexican Desert Green
(AFP, 18.Jul.2018) â Driving through the endless dunes and cacti of the Chihuahuan desert in northern Mexico, a shimmering blue field suddenly appears on the horizon â not a mirage, but the largest solar park in Latin America. This silent stretch of sand in the state of Coahuila is the […]
Venezuela Facing ‘Economic Collapse’, IMF Warns
(AFP, 18.Jul.2018) â Venezuela is in a state of âeconomic collapseâ with hyperinflation not seen since the middle of the last century, the International Monetary Fund said Monday. Despite higher oil prices that are benefiting most exporting nations, the IMF sees a worsening contraction of the economy, which in April […]
Petrobras to Start Up 4 New Platforms in 4Q
(Reuters, 18.Jul.2018) â Brazilâs state-controlled oil company Petrobras will start pumping pre-salt oil from four new platforms between October and December, the companyâs director for production and technology development Hugo Repsold said. Speaking to reporters at an oil industry event, he said Petrobras could study building its own platforms after […]
Total Advances Renewable Projects in Brazil
(UPI, Daniel J. Graeber, 18.Jul.2018) â A renewable energy division of French supermajor Total said Wednesday it was moving forward with new solar power developments in Brazil. Total in September paid about $275 million to acquire a 23 percent stake in renewable energy company Eren, naming the new entity Total […]
Duque Names Maria Fernanda Suarez Energy Minister
(Reuters, 18.Jul.2018) â Colombia’s President-elect Ivan Duque on Wednesday named Maria Fernanda Suarez as mining and energy minister when he takes office in August, a role that will require her to bolster oil production to help weak economic growth and settle messy mining disputes. Suarez, 44, is currently executive vice […]
Guyanese Tanker Workers Undergo Safety Training
(Stabroek News, 18.Jul.2018) â Approximately 35 Guyanese Pritchard-Gordon Tankers (PGT) workers were educated on safety practices as Shell partnered with the company to host a one-day workshop yesterday. The workshop was hosted at the Pegasus Hotel, where the workers were taken through the rounds by PGTâs Nick Griffith. âMy main […]
Colombia Names New Mining Minister
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 18.Jul.2018) â Colombiaâs President elect IvĂĄn Duque named Ecopetrol Executive Vice President MarĂa Fernanda SuĂĄrez as the countryâs new mining minister, according to reports in the daily newspaper La Republica. ***
U.S. Revokes Visa of Citgo CEO
(Bloomberg, Lucia Kassai and Fabiola Zerpa, 18.Jul.2018) â Being a blood relative of Hugo Chavez used to open doors. Now Asdrubal Chavez, cousin of the late Venezuelan socialist leader, is finding out it can close some as well. In the most recent blow against Venezuela, the U.S. revoked the visa […]
YPF to Sell Bonds Ending 2-Mth Debt Drought
(Bloomberg, Pablo Rosendo Gonzalez, 18.Jul.2018) â Argentineâs state-controlled oil company YPF SA has asked banks to submit proposals for a bond sale in the second half of the year to fund an aggressive growth plan for its power unit. YPF Energia Electrica SA will try to sell at least $500 […]
Trinidad Takes 13 Days to Contain Leaking Well
(MEEI, 17.Jul.2018) â The Ministry of Energy & Energy Industries (MEEI) announced that Couva Marine 2 – the leaking oil well in the Gulf of Paria – was successfully brought under control at 12:00 noon today. The shut – in well developed a leak on July 4, 2018 and had […]
ENAP Names New General Manger
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin, 17.Jul.2018) â Chileâs state oil company ENAP names a new general manager. The company selected AndrĂ©s Roccatagliata Orsini, who will assume the post on August 6, 2018, announced the company in an official statement on its website. Roccatagliata is a commercial engineer by training and […]
Barbados: A $3 Billion Exercise
(Barbados Today, Marlon Madden, 17.Jul.2018) â It will require an estimated $3 billion worth of investment in a diverse set of renewable energy sources if Barbados is to achieve its goal of 100 per cent renewable energy usage by 2030. At the same time, officials are predicting that the island […]
Barbados to Establish New Renewable Energy Regime
(Barbados Today, Marlon Madden, 17.Jul.2018) â Within another month producers of electricity from renewable energy sources should have an idea of the new rate they will be paid for selling power to the Barbados Light & Power (BL&P) under the Renewable Energy Rider (RER) programme. This promise has come from […]
Petrobras Output in Campos Drops
(Reuters, Marta Nogueira, 17.Jul.2018) â Oil production by Brazilian state-led Petroleo Brasileiro SA in the Campos basin fell 1.4 percent in June over the previous month to 1.042 million barrels a day, its lowest level since 2001, as mature fields decline, according to company data. Output has dropped 15.8 percent […]
Cano Limon-Covenas Pipeline Restarts After 180 Days
(Reuters, 17.Jul.2018) â Pumping through the Colombia’s Cano Limon-Covenas oil pipeline restarted after a 180-day stoppage due to repeated attacks by Marxist ELN rebels, military and industry sources said on Tuesday. The 485-mile (780-km) pipeline has been attacked 58 times this year by the National Liberation Army (ELN), the country’s […]
Colombia’s Cano Limon Pipeline Restarts
(Seeking Alpha, Carl Surran, 17.Jul.2018) â Colombia’s Cano Limon-Covenas pipeline has resumed pumping oil after a 180-day stoppage due to repeated attacks by Marxist ELN rebels, according to loval military and industry sources. Apart from bombing damage, 41 illegal valves used to steal crude were found on the pipeline, says […]
Venezuela Claims It Plans To Raise Oil Production
(OilPrice.com, Tsvetana Paraskova, 17.Jul.2018) â Venezuelaâs Oil Minister Manuel Quevedo has discussed plans with state-held oil company PDVSA to raise the countryâs crude oil production in the second half of the year. While Venezuela and its struggling oil firm claim that they are revising their production planning in order to […]