South America

US Slaps Sanctions On Russian Oil Major Rosneft

February 19, 2020 | Company Operations, Energy Trading & Markets, South America

London, UK | – The United States on Feb. 18 ramped up pressure on Venezuela by blacklisting a subsidiary of Russian state oil major Rosneft that President Donald Trump’s administration said provides a financial lifeline to President Nicolas Maduro’s government. The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Rosneft Trading SA, the Geneva-based trading unit of Rosneft, as Washington targeted Moscow over its backing of Maduro’s government. The move further complicates already-fraught U.S.-Russian relations. Russia condemned the sanctions, saying they amounted to unfair competition and would …

OPEC cuts may go deeper as another member sees output slump

April 27, 2018 | Angola, OPEC, South America

London, UK | – While plunging output in Venezuela captures the oil world’s attention; problems are quietly festering in another OPEC nation. Angola, once Africa’s biggest crude producer, is suffering sharp declines at under-invested offshore fields, with output dropping almost three times as much as the nation pledged in an accord with fellow OPEC members. With the losses set to accelerate — a shipping program seen by Bloomberg News shows crude exports will fall in June to the lowest since at least 2008 — the …

Total strikes first oil from offshore Brazilian mega-field

November 28, 2017 | Deepwater, Rigs & Vessels, South America

London, UK | – French multinational oil giant, Total SA, have announce the first oil from the Libra mega-field, located 180 kilometres of Rio de Janeiro. The floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit Pionerio de Libra is located in unltra-deep water and has a 50,000 barrel capacity. The start-up phase of production will focus on generating initial revenue and capturing technical data to streamline the development stage. The Libra development will continue to search for further investment in the Libra 1 FSPO, which has …

ExxonMobil awards FPSO contract to SBM Offshore

June 22, 2017 | Oilfield Services, Rigs & Vessels, South America

London, UK | – American multinational oil and gas corporation, ExxonMobil, has confirmed the award of contracts for the next phase of the Liza project in Guyana – including one for SBM Offshore. SBM Offshore will construct, install, lease and operate a FPSO vessel for the firm. The company’s chief executive Bruno Chabas welcomed the news, and put the award down to the company’s experience. He said: “We are proud that ExxonMobil awarded SBM Offshore the contracts for the Liza FPSO. The Liza Field offshore …

Brazil’s Petrobras forges partnership with Norway’s Statoil

August 31, 2016 | Mergers, Acquisitions & JVs, North Sea & Western Europe, South America

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | — Brazil’s state-controlled Petrobras and Norway’s Statoil agreed to a partnership that includes joint upstream bidding, the revival of mature offshore fields and natural gas projects. The new non-binding memorandum of understanding follows Statoil’s agreement to pay around $2.5billion for Petrobras’ 66pc operating stake in the BM-S-8 exploration block in the prolific Santos basin. The companies had first announced plans for a partnership at the same time. Brazil is expected to launch a sub-salt licensing round in 2017 covering interconnected …

Argentina refiners buy Nigeria’s Bonga crude oil

May 22, 2016 | Refining & Processing, South America

London, UK | – A 1 million-barrel cargo of Nigeria’s Bonga medium crude oil is expected to be discharged in Argentina this week, the second crude import by firms operating in the South American country this year to secure oil supplies for their refineries, according to Reuters. The new government of President Mauricio Macri is in talks between oil producers and refiners to make sure Argentina’s total output of light crude is processed at domestic plants, lowering demand for imported oil. But because of quality issues – …

Colombia’s Ecopetrol buys stake in Angolan blocks

July 05, 2014 | Angola, Mergers, Acquisitions & JVs, South America

Bogota, Colombia | – Colombia’s state-owned oil company Ecopetrol has bought a ten percent stake in two blocks off the coast of Angola as part of an effort to diversify its portfolio, the company said in a statement on Thursday. Ecopetrol said it jointly purchased 10 percent of blocks 38/11 and 39/11 in Angola’s Kwanza basin with Norwegian energy company Statoil, for an undisclosed sum. “The two blocks are operated by Statoil, and together constitute an area of 14,135 square kilometres,” Ecopetrol said. “During 2014 …

Petrobras says 12% staff to take early-retirement plan

May 05, 2014 | Company Operations, Employment, South America

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | – Brazil’s state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA said on Monday it expects to save about 10 billion reais ($4.51 billion) by 2018 after one in eight employees agreed to quit under an early retirement plan. Petrobras, as the company is known, said in a statement that 8,298 employees signed up for the plan and that their departure will cut labour costs by 13 billion reais over five years. Petrobras will write off the 2.4-billion-real cost of the voluntary dismissal …