Energy & Oil

• Saturday, March 17th 2012 - 06:01 UTC

  EU ministers agree to free trade pact with Colombia and Peru

  

  EU trade ministers agreed on Friday to approve a free trade pact with Colombia and Peru that could boost European car and chemical exports and lift food and mineral exports from the South American countries.

• Friday, March 16th 2012 - 19:05 UTC

  Falklands tells Argentina latest intimidation and bullying efforts are entirely counter-productive

  

  The elected government of the Falkland Islands said on Friday it regrets the latest attempt by the Argentine government to economically undermine the Islanders way of life, which is yet another example of intimidation and bullying towards a country of 3.000 people.

• Friday, March 16th 2012 - 08:37 UTC

  Argentina promises legal actions against all companies involved in Falklands’ oil industry

  

  Argentina will take legal action at home and abroad against any companies involved directly or indirectly in hydrocarbons exploration off the Falkland/Malvinas Islands, Foreign Minister Hector Timerman said on Thursday.

• Thursday, March 15th 2012 - 22:17 UTC

  Quick reply to Argentina: UK reaffirms Falklands’ right to develop hydrocarbons resources

  

  Britain waited only a few minutes for Argentina to finish detailing a barrage of legal and administrative threats against anybody and everybody involved in the Falklands oil industry, and firmly stated its full support to the Islanders development of their hydrocarbons resources.

• Thursday, March 15th 2012 - 06:07 UTC

  YPF survival battle to remain private took off in two Patagonian provinces

  

  The governments of the Patagonian provinces of Chubut and Santa Cruz announced the termination of the contract of exploitation of four different oil wells that YPF handles in the Gulf San Jorge and that both provinces share. Spain’s Repsol, the oil giant that controls YPF has announced it will file a lawsuit against the measure.

• Tuesday, March 13th 2012 - 07:24 UTC

  First deadline for Repsol-YPF: invest or loose concessions in Chubut

  

  Argentine Patagonia Chubut province could move to revoke oil and gas concessions held by Spain’s Repsol controlled oil and gas giant YPF SA as soon as Wednesday, a provincial official said Monday.

• Friday, March 9th 2012 - 06:19 UTC

  Argentine government and YPF clash over the company’s dividends policy

  

  The relationship between the Argentine Government and the Spanish Repsol-YPF oil company continues to strain in spite of recent announcements and contacts to try and cool the situation.

• Wednesday, March 7th 2012 - 17:23 UTC

  Cristina Fernandez meets Piñera next week: Falklands air link in the agenda

  

  Argentine president Cristina Fernandez is scheduled to travel to Chile next week to meet with her peer Sebastian Piñera and the Falklands issue expected to outstand in the bilateral agenda, particularly air links with the Islands.

• Tuesday, March 6th 2012 - 23:55 UTC

  China boosts domestic security budget to face growing unrest

  

  Premier Wen Jiabao said China would strengthen its military's capabilities to win “local wars under information-age conditions”, even as the government announced a steep 11.5% rise in domestic security spending to ensure stability ahead of a leadership transition.

• Thursday, March 1st 2012 - 23:11 UTC

  Argentina and Spain agree to a working group to help resolve YPF ‘differences’

  

  Spain and Argentina formed a working group to resolve their “differences” over YPF, the Argentine oil company majority-owned by Madrid-based Repsol-YPF, Industry Minister Jose Manuel Soria said.