Almost 5.000 manufacturing plants have suffered from the latest electricity and gas restrictions, warned Argentina's Industrial Union, UIA, with blackouts equivalent to 40% of energy demand in a six to eight hours daily band.
Bolivia took control Tuesday of two refineries it bought back from Brazil's Petrobras following a long dispute over the final price and insurance policy reported the Bolivian news agency.
The Patagonian province of Santa Cruz and Petrobras signed an agreement for the exploration of two gas basins in the extreme south of Argentina, plus the possibility of further concessions to another foreign company.
Santiago natural gas supplier Metrogas put its emergency plan into action on Monday, following last weekend's record high natural gas consumption in the Metropolitan Region.
The cold front currently affecting Chile has caused the unusually high energy demand; the months of May and June have been the coldest the country has seen for the past 20 years.
Bolivian President Evo Morales created a political stir in Chile when he hinted Sunday that his country is considering selling natural gas to Chile, even while admitting that his cabinet is divided over the issue.
Climate change worries coupled with high oil prices and increasing government support are fuelling soaring rates of investment in the renewable energy and energy efficiency industries, a new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released this week.
Desire Petroleum PLC (AIM:DES) announced earlier this month that Wavefield InSeis ASA from Norway acquired a majority of the high resolution 2D shallow-seismic data, at a number of potential drilling sites, on its licences in the North Falkland Basin, using the seismic vessel Bergen Surveyor.
Argentina's main natural gas and electricity distributors interrupted this Monday for the fourth day running their provision to industry and big consumers to ensure supply to homes following a consumption peak attributed to the polar weather spell covering most of central and south Argentina.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC continues to monitor global oil markets and is prepared to help mitigate any tightness but the level of 30 million barrels a day ensures that commercial oil stocks remain at comfortable levels for the time being, said OPEC's Secretary General in Vienna.
Brazilian government-controlled oil company Petrobras is planning to invest 18 billion US dollars in the gas sector over the next four years, most of it in 2008, taking Brazil's current production from 27.5 million cubic meters in 2006 to 70 million cubic meters by 2011.