(Reuters, Nidhi Verma, 4.Dec.2018) — India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corp has received a payment of $32 million from Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) as part of a settlement of outstanding dividend payments and said it now hopes that Venezuela’s state oil firm will be regular in making further payments, a […]
Tag: PDVSA
ONGC Gets $32mn Pmt From PDVSA
(Reuters, 4.Dec.2018) — India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corp has received a payment of $32 million from Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) as part of a settlement of outstanding dividend payments and said it now hopes that Venezuela’s state oil firm will be regular in making further payments, a senior ONGC […]
LatAmNRG Panorama 28.Nov.2018: Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela
(Energy Analytics Institute, Jared Yamin and Piero Stewart, 28.Nov. 2018) — Heard on the street and other LatAmNRG briefs from Mexico, OPEC producers Ecuador and Venezuela, and Peru. Heard On The Street And Briefs Saudi Arabia Boosting Oil Output As Venezuela’s Falls Saudi Arabia is said to have slightly boosted […]
Venezuela Makes Multimillion-dollar Payment To Retain Citgo
(Houston Business Journal, Olivia Pulsinelli, 28.Nov.2018) — Houston-based refiner Citgo Holding Inc. will remain owned by Venezuela’s state-run oil company, PetrĂłleos de Venezuela SA, if PDVSA follows through with the terms of a settlement. According to multiple reports, the settlement will resolve an arbitration claim from Crystallex International Corp., a […]
$1.4 Billion Deal Allows Venezuela To Keep Citgo’s Three U.S. refineries
(Houston Chronicle, Sergio Chapa, 26.Nov.2018) — A payment on a $1.4 billion arbitration award to a Canadian gold mining company is allowing Venezuela to keep ownership of Citgo Petroleum’s three U.S. refineries — at least through January. The Venezuelan government recently paid Toronto-based Crystallex International Corp. $425 million as part […]
Venezuela Hangs On To Citgo After Big Debt Payment
(Fox Business, Mike Obel, 26.Nov.2018) — Venezuela managed to retain ownership of Citgo, the big U.S. refining and gasoline marketing company that is one of its few remaining sources of hard currency, according to a report. In August, Canadian mining company Crystallex International got a court order authorizing the sale […]
Rosneft’s Sechin Flies To Venezuela, Rebukes Maduro Over Oil Shipments
(Reuters, Alexandra Ulmer and Marianna Parraga, 24.Nov.2018) — The head of Russian oil company Rosneft, Igor Sechin, flew to Caracas this week to meet Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and complain over delayed oil shipments designed to repay loans, two sources briefed on the conversation said on Saturday. The visit, which […]
PDVSA In Talks Over 2nd Sea-Borne Oil-Transfer Operation
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 22.Nov.2018) — Venezuela’s state-run oil firm PDVSA has begun talks with shipping firms to set up a second ship-to-ship (STS) operation off the country’s eastern coast in an effort to increase sagging crude exports, according to three people familiar with the matter. PDVSA this year began sea-borne […]
LatAmNRG Panorama 22.Nov.2018: Venezuela, Colombia, Argentina
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart and Aaron Simonsky, 22.Nov. 2018) — Heard on the street and other LatAmNRG briefs from OPEC producer Venezuela, and neighboring Colombia, emerging shale gas producer Argentina. Heard On The Street And Briefs Venezuelan Oil Workers Protest In Zulia A group of oil workers marched to […]
Venezuela’s Maduro Says $100/bbl Oil Is ‘Fair Price’
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 21.Nov. 2018) — Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro said an $100 oil price is a “fair price” for a barrel of oil, and assured that low oil prices do “damage” to the world economy. “The price of oil should be $100 a barrel,” said Maduro during […]
Venezuela Fuel Shortages Get Worse As Tanker Staff Flee
(Bloomberg, Fabiola Zerpa, 21.Nov.2018) — Venezuela’s fuel shortages are worsening as mass resignations at the state oil company’s tanker fleet have delayed gasoline shipments. Petroleos de Venezuela SA’s refineries are running at less than a quarter of their capacity, forcing the country to rely on imported gasoline. Once the cargoes […]
Venezuela Set To Share Economic Data With IMF
(OilPrice.com, Tsvetana Paraskova, 15.Nov.2018) — OPEC’s member Venezuela—which is sitting on the world’s largest crude oil reserves but which is suffering the worst loss of oil production in history outside of war-induced outages—is getting ready to share macroeconomic data with the International Monetary Fund to avoid penalties including possible exclusion […]
Venezuela Pushing For Dragon Gas In 18 Months
(Trinidad Express, 15.Nov.2018) — Venezuela’s minister of energy, Manuel Quevedo, said yesterday that his country’s state-owned oil giant PDVSA expects to start sending natural gas to Trinidad from the Dragon field, off this country’s north-west coast, within two years. Speaking at a news conference following the 20th ministerial meeting of […]
Fuel Shortages The New Norm In Venezuela As Oil Industry Unravels
(Reuters, Tibisay Romero, Deisy Buitrago, 13.Nov.2018) — With chronic shortages of basic goods afflicting her native Venezuela, Veronica Perez used to drive from supermarket to supermarket in her grey Chevrolet Aveo searching for food. But the 54-year-old engineer has abandoned the practice because of shortages of something that should be […]
Venezuela Hoping To Steeply Raise Oil Output Next Year
(Reuters, 11.Nov.2018) — Venezuela is hoping to steeply raise oil output next year but will respect any new deal if OPEC agrees to reduce output from December, Oil Minister Manuel Quevedo said on Sunday. The south American OPEC nation’s current oil output is 1.5 million barrels per day and it […]
Venezuela Gov’t Says Sabotage To Blame For Electric Outages In Margarita
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 10.Nov.2018) — An explosion that occurred along a segment of the Northeast Gas Pipeline JosĂ© Francisco BermĂşdez, and which caused interruptions in electricity service in Nueva Esparta state, was an act of terrorism and sabotage, announced Venezuela’s Electricity Minister Luis Motta DomĂnguez. “The interruption of […]
Chevron Stayed In Venezuela Long After Rivals Quit
(Wall Street Journal, Kejal Vyas and Bradley Olson, 8.Nov.2018) — For nearly a century, Chevron Corp. has weathered dictatorships, coups and nationalization drives to keep pumping oil in Venezuela. But recently, executives at the last U.S. oil major in the country have debated whether it may be time to get out, […]
Rosneft Says Venezuela’s Bill Falls To $3.1 Billion
(Reuters, 6.Nov.2018) — Rosneft was owed $3.1 billion by Venezuela as of September 30, down from $3.6 billion on June 30, Russia’s largest oil producer said on Tuesday. It also said it owes $26.8 billion to traders under prepayment deals for its oil as of Sept. 30, down from $29.3 […]
Ex-Venezuela Oil Official Pleads Guilty In Graft Probe
(AP, 2.Nov.2018) The former finance chief of Venezuela’s state oil company pleaded guilty on Wednesday to participating in an alleged US$1.2-billion embezzlement scheme, a major breakthrough for US prosecutors targeting corruption by people close to President Nicolas Maduro, including his stepsons. Appearing in a Miami federal court, Abraham Ortega promised […]
Gazprombank Says No Role In Venezuela Graft Case
(Reuters, Alexandra Ulmer, 2.Nov.2018) — Russian bank Gazprombank on Friday said it had no role in a Venezuelan corruption case at state energy company PDVSA. Abraham Ortega, a former financial executive at PDVSA, accepted $5 million in bribes to favor a French oil company and a Russian bank, U.S. prosecutors […]
Exclusive: Perenco, Gazprombank Named In Venezuela Graft Case – Source
(Reuters, Alexandra Ulmer, 1.Nov.2018) — Anglo-French oil company Perenco and Russian financial firm Gazprombank have been identified in testimony by a former Venezuelan state oil company official who said he received millions of dollars in bribes in return for giving them preferential treatment, a source with knowledge of the matter […]
PDVSA’s Citgo Contributes To 8th Annual Houston Energy Day Festival
(Citgo Petroleum, 1.Nov.2018) — CITGO Petroleum Corporation recently participated in Houston’s largest free family festival, Energy Day. The event brought together families, students, energy professionals and other members of the community for a day of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs, exhibits and activities. With more than 25,000 attendees […]
Ex-Venezuelan Oil Exec Admits Bribes In $1.2 Bln Money-Laundering Scheme
(El Nuevo Herald, Jay Weaver And Antonio Maria Delgado, 31.Oct.2018) — A former top official of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company pleaded guilty Wednesday in Miami federal court to playing a pivotal role in a $1.2 billion money-laundering racket that U.S. authorities say was run by some of the country’s wealthiest […]
PDVSA Bewilders Bond Analysts By Making $949mn Payment
(Bloomberg, Davide Scigliuzzo, 31.Oct.2018) — Venezuela just forked over almost $1 billion to stay current on a bond backed by shares of its U.S. refiner Citgo. The question is why. Yes, the payment ensures that Venezuela’s state-run oil company PDVSA gets to hold onto Citgo Holding Inc. for now, but […]
PDVSA Ships $35 Million Oil Cargo To Pay Dividends To ONGC – Sources
(Reuters, Alexandra Ulmer, Nidhi Verma, 31.Oct.2018) — Venezuela’s state-run PDVSA has shipped a crude cargo valued at $35 million as partial payment to Indian oil company ONGC Videsh Ltd for overdue dividends from a joint venture, according to two people familiar with the matter. The payment is based on an […]
Texas Man Pleads Guilty In Ongoing Venezuela Bribery Probe
(The Wall Street Journal, Samuel Rubenfeld, 30.Oct.2018) — U.S. prosecutors said they secured another guilty plea in their ongoing corruption probe of Venezuela’s state-run oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PdVSA. Ivan Alexis Guedez, a former PdVSA procurement officer from Katy, Texas, pleaded guilty to a money-laundering conspiracy charge. […]
Venezuela Poses Clear Threat – Comments Could Refuel Trump Military Action Talks
(Express, Ciaran McGrath, 30.Oct.2018) — Venezuela represents a “clear threat to regional stability” and a “direct challenge” to the United States, a senior US Government official has said, as the possibility of Donald Trump taking military action resurfaced after widespread speculation in the summer. The oil-rich South American country’s economy […]
Investors Begin Receiving Payment PDVSA 2020 Bond: Sources
(Reuters) — Investors have started to receive payment of interest and principal on Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA’s 2020 bond, two bondholders said on Tuesday. (Reporting by Corina Pons, writing by Brian Ellsworth Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) ### #LatAmNRG
Lawmaker Says Voluntad Popular To Present ‘Energy Venezuela’ Proposal
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 29.Oct. 2018) — Opposition party Voluntad Popular will present a proposal called “Energy Venezuela,” which will outline guidelines established for a modification of Venezuela’s Hydrocarbons Law to reverse the fall of oil production in the OPEC country. Among aspects outlined in the proposal are suggestions […]
Venezuela’s Hydrocarbon Sector Incurring Weekly Accidents
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 28.Oct.2018) — Petroleum sector accidents and oil spills in Venezuela have become an almost regular occurrence. Between two and three accidents are happening each per week in PDVSA operational areas as well as a similar number of oil spills, reported the daily newspaper El Nacional, […]
Venezuela: Oil Producer’s Slump Reflects Nation’s Decline
(Ft.com, Gideon Long, John Paul Rathbone, 28.Oct.2018) — Gideon Long in Caracas and John Paul Rathbone in Washington October 28, 2018 Print this page 95 In the lobby of the building where Iván Freites works, a photograph of an oil rig covers one wall. Emblazoned across it is the Venezuelan […]
Venezuela, Mexico Divert Crude To U.S. As Canadian Barrels Get Stuck
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, Collin Eaton, 26.Oct.2018) — Cash-strapped state-run oil companies in Mexico and Venezuela have begun diverting crude historically processed for domestic use and sending it to U.S. refiners now facing transportation constraints to secure similar grades from Canada, data shows. The situation reflects an unusual set of events, […]
PDVSA Distillation Units At CardĂłn Refinery Halted
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 25.Oct.2018) — Four distillations units at PDVSA’s Cardón refinery, located in Falcón state, are said halted due to a lack of oil and power failures, reported the daily newspaper El Nacional. Cardón refinery has a processing capacity of 310,000 barrels per day. ***
Bondholders Raise Hopes Venezuela Will Pay Up On Due Debt
(Ft.com, Gideon Long, 25.Oct.2018) — In a month in which emerging market government bonds have been hammered by the prospect of US rate increases, geopolitical risk and fears of a US-China trade spat, one bond — in crisis-racked Venezuela of all places — has rallied to record highs. The 2020 […]
Conoco Is Collecting $2 Billion From Venezuela—One Barrel of Oil at a Time
(Bloomberg, Alex Nussbaum, 25.Oct.2018) — ConocoPhillips’ decade-old legal war with Venezuela began paying off this week as the embattled Latin American country started making good on a $2 billion arbitration settlement one barrel of crude at a time. Venezuela’s state-run oil company has made an initial $345 million payment in […]
CITGO Expands Innovation Academy Presence In Texas
(CITGO, 25.Oct.2018) — CITGO Petroleum Company announced the West Oso Independent School District has approved the launch of a CITGO Innovation Academy in Corpus Christi, Texas. This is the fourth CITGO Innovation Academy established in the Corpus Christi region and the seventh Innovation Academy established in the CITGO operational footprint. […]
PDVSA Prepares To Make $949 Mln Payment On Citgo-Backed Bond
(Bloomberg, 24.Oct.2018) — Petroleos de Venezuela SA’s plan to make a $949 million bond payment would mark a rare exception for Nicolas Maduro’s regime as it tries to hold on to the crown jewel of its U.S. assets. Venezuela’s state-run oil company is preparing to make the coupon and partial […]
Justice Department Demands Details From Glencore On Intermediary Firms
(Reuters, Dmitry Zhdannikov, Julia Payne, 23.Oct.2018) — The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking documents from Glencore (GLEN.L) about intermediary companies that the commodities firm has worked with in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela and Nigeria, sources familiar with the matter said. The investigation is not directed at Glencore’s […]
Foreign Oil And Gas Firms Look To Play Crucial Role In Venezuela
(Energy Global, David Bizley, 19.Oct.2018) — The majority of foreign companies are not making any profit or losing money in their partnerships with PDVSA to develop and produce hydrocarbons due to inadequate investment, shattered infrastructure and US sanctions. However, in the long term, having access to the vast hydrocarbon reserves […]
Trump Talks Tough On Venezuela, But Imports Ever More Venezuelan Oil
(Miami Herald, Andres Oppenheimer, 17.Oct.2018) — There is a major inconsistency in President Trump’s stand on Venezuela: He talks tough — and even makes veiled threats of a military intervention in that country. But at the same time, he steadfastly refuses to cut U.S. imports of Venezuelan oil, which are […]
U.S. Eyes More Venezuelan Sanctions, But Oil On Backburner: U.S. Official
(Reuters, Roberta Rampton, 17.Oct.2018) — The United States plans to turn up sanctions pressure on Venezuela but sees less need to immediately target its energy sector, given sagging production from the OPEC member’s state-run oil company, a senior U.S. administration official said on Wednesday. The U.S. government has imposed several […]
PDVSA, Pequiven Retirees Protest Lack Of Pension Payments
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 17.Oct.2018) — Retired workers with PDVSA and Pequiven spoke out in the streets in a protest aimed at calling attention to pensions unpaid by the Venezuelan government. Unfortunately, a number of retired company workers have died waiting for pension payments, reported Venezuelan media El Carabobeño, […]
PDVSA Preparing $950mn Payment On 2020 Bond
(Reuters, 15.Oct.2018) — Venezuela’s state-owned oil company PDVSA is preparing to pay holders of its 2020 bond some $950 million this month, after failing to make interest payments on most other bonds this year, sources at the company and in the local financial sector said. PDVSA has fallen behind on […]
Venezuela Solicits Audit of Pacific Coast Refinery, RĂo Napo
(Energy Analytics Institute, Piero Stewart, 13.Oct.2018) — Venezuela has solicited an audit of costs related to the Pacific Coast Refinery and RĂo Napo JV in order to discuss potential investment plans with Ecuador, reported the daily Ecuadorian newspaper El Universo. In May 2018, Saudi Arabia’s Aramco announced it was interested […]
Shell Seeks To Sell Venezuela JV Stake
(Reuters, 12.Oct.2018) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc is negotiating the sale of its stake in a Venezuelan oil joint venture to Paris-based Maurel & Prom , three sources said this week, a move to scale down its crude business in the ailing OPEC-member country to focus on gas. The Anglo-Dutch […]
Maurel & Prom Confirms Discussions With Shell Over Urdaneta West Field In Venezuela
(Maurel & Prom, 12.Oct.2018) — Etablissements Maurel & Prom notes recent press articles and confirms it is working on the acquisition of Shell Exploration and Production Investments B.V.’s 40% interest as “Shareholder B” in Petroregional del Lago Mixed Company, which operates the Urdaneta West field in Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela. Maurel […]
Venezuela Sets New Wages For Oil Workers As Protests Simmer
(Reuters, Alexandra Ulmer, 10.Oct.2018) — Venezuela on Wednesday increased wages for workers at state energy company PDVSA after employees staged small protests to decry meager salaries amid the OPEC nation’s economic meltdown. Socialist President Nicolas Maduro in August unexpectedly ordered a 60-fold increase in the minimum wage to compensate for […]
Citgo, Valero Drive Up U.S. Purchases of Venezuelan Oil in September
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 4.Oct.2018) — Venezuela’s September crude sales to the United States rose to their highest in over a year, boosted by purchases by Citgo Petroleum, the U.S. refining arm of Venezuela’s state-run PDVSA, and Valero Energy, according to Refinitiv Eikon trade flows data. A collision in August at […]
Venezuela’s Oil Exports Are Falling Even Faster Than Expected
(OilPrice.com, Irina Slav, 3.Oct.2018) — A delay in port repairs following a tanker collision is putting additional pressure on already pressured Venezuelan crude oil exports, Reuters quoted anonymous sources close to PDVSA as saying this week. It seems that Venezuela’s woes are only multiplying as time goes by, although news […]
Venezuelan Oil Port Repairs Delayed, Crude Exports Fall: Sources
(Reuters, Marianna Parraga, 2.Oct.2018) — Repairs to a dock at Venezuela’s main oil export port will take at least another month to complete following a tanker collision more than a month ago, further restraining the OPEC member nation’s crude exports, according to sources and shipping data. A minor incident in […]