Energy & Oil

• Thursday, December 26th 2013 - 08:17 UTC

  Brazil conditions any future oil pre-salt bidding to local industry capacity to supply equipment and services

  

  Brazilian Government has decided that any future bidding rounds involving pre-salt blocks will only be launched according to the local industry capability to supply the demand in equipment and services needed by the sector. Local industry has been struggling to keep up with the demand placed by O&G players already involved in pre-salt E&P in Brazil, which are all Petrobras partners, such as BG and others.

• Thursday, December 26th 2013 - 07:31 UTC

  Gazprom confirms in has started production at Prirazlomnoye field on the Arctic shelf

  

  Gazprom has started producing oil from the Prirazlomnoye field, which is the first Russian project for developing the Arctic shelf and the commencement of their large-scale activities aimed at creating a large hydrocarbon production center in the region, according to the company.

• Thursday, December 26th 2013 - 05:43 UTC

  Falklands offshore exploration drilling agenda for Rockhopper

  

  Rockhopper Exploration has issued details of its next planned exploration wells offshore the Falkland Islands. The details were published on the Offshore site 23 December. Rockhopper was the first of several companies operating in Falklands waters to confirm the existence of oil and gas.

• Friday, December 20th 2013 - 06:09 UTC

  Venezuela considering increase in gasoline prices, world's cheapest: 2 cents a liter

  

  President Nicolas Maduro said he was contemplating a three-year period to raise domestic fuel prices; a sensitive issue for Venezuela where a similar move helped spark deadly 1989 riots.

• Friday, December 20th 2013 - 05:57 UTC

  Argentina files complaint with WTO against EU duties on bio-diesel

  

  Argentina has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization against the European Union’s decision to impose anti-dumping duties on its biodiesel exports. The duties are “clearly protectionist” and will affect annual sales worth more than 1.5 billion, Argentina’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday on its website.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 17:49 UTC

  Falklands' budget challenge: how to distinguish recurrent funding from oil windfall income

  

  The Falkland Islands Executive Council, (EXCO), considers essential more public scrutiny to budget affairs discussions so that individuals can better understand what monies are available for ongoing funding and which are windfall incomes from oil related matters.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 16:46 UTC

  Falklands to cash 146m dollars from tax on farm-out deal in oil industry

  

  An agreement has been reached between the Falkland Islands government and Rockhopper Exploration regarding tax arising from the Sea Lion farm-out to Premier Oil, an operation involving a billion US dollars, and which according to the settlement generated a credit of 146m dollars for the Islands Treasury.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 07:15 UTC

  Heat wave in Argentina collapses power grid: thousands with no energy or water

  

  People out in the streets banging pots and pans, or protesting burning tires and garbage containers in powerless neighborhoods, while an estimated 30.000 businesses in Buenos Aires City and metropolitan area are organizing demanding compensation for losses suffered because of the collapse of the power distribution system overwhelmed by an extraordinary heat wave with temperatures in the high thirties and low forties.

• Wednesday, December 18th 2013 - 06:19 UTC

  Falklands oil industry: Buenos Aires rejects UK formal protest; 'Malvinas are Argentine'

  

  Argentina formally rejected on Tuesday the United Kingdom's 16 December protest against the latest Argentine hydrocarbons legislation which seeks to criminalize oil industry activities in Falklands/Malvinas Islands waters and which London argues is not applicable to the Islands.

• Saturday, December 14th 2013 - 07:03 UTC

  Falkland Islands progress in renewable energy surprises Chilean experts.

  

  Three experts in the use of renewable energy who were visiting the Falkland Islands this week as the guests of the Falkland Islands Government declared themselves surprised by extent of the efforts made in the Islands to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.