Energy & Oil

• Thursday, February 27th 2025 - 13:20 UTC

  Deaths and robbery reported during Chile's blackout

  

  As Chile's electricity supply gradually went back to normal Wednesday, one death and an armed robbery were reported following Tuesday's 10-hour blackout resulting in a nationwide curfew.

• Thursday, February 27th 2025 - 10:34 UTC

  Trump ends Biden's oil concessions to Venezuela

  

  US President Donald Trump has revoked the oil concessions granted to Venezuela by his predecessor, Joseph Biden, due to non-compliance with electoral conditions and lack of cooperation in the process of deporting “violent criminals,” it was announced in Washington DC. This decision impacts Chevron's operations in Venezuela, which were authorized by Biden in 2022.

• Thursday, February 27th 2025 - 10:29 UTC

  Petrobras' 2024 profits below those attained the year before

  

  Brazil's State-owned oil company Petrobras activities yielded R$36.6 billion (US$7.5 billion) in profits last year, according to a report released Wednesday in Brasilia. However, these figures are below 2023's performance, when the company recorded a net profit of R$124.6 billion (US$24.9 billion), the exchange rate variation in debts between Petrobras and its subsidiaries abroad playing a key role in these results.

• Wednesday, February 26th 2025 - 10:59 UTC

  Nationwide curfew decreed in Chile amid mass blackout

  

  About 98% of Chile's population was left Tuesday without electricity, prompting President Gabriel Boric Font to decree a curfew between 10 pm to 6 am Wednesday with 3,000 troops deployed nationwide. The outage began at 3.16 pm after a failure in an ISA InterChile transmission line between Vallenar and Coquimbo, causing a chain reaction that disconnected key parts of the national grid. Boric said the incident was “intolerable,” and vowed to hold the subsidiary of Colombia’s ISA accountable.

• Tuesday, February 25th 2025 - 15:20 UTC

  Petrobras orders four homebuilt tankers

  

  Brazil's State-run oil company Petrobras and its subsidiary Transpetro Monday signed a contract for the building of four Handy-class tankers, each costing US$ 69.5 million, with a total investment of US$ 278 million. The new ships will become a part of Petrobras' Fleet Renewal and Expansion Program. The ceremony in Rio Grande do Sul was attended by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin, and other officials.

• Thursday, February 20th 2025 - 18:03 UTC

  Bolivian official warns against disinformation regarding lithium contracts

  

  Bolivia's Vice Minister of Communication Gabriela Alcón said this week that spreading misinformation about lithium contracts would result in delays to the mineral's industrialization in her country. She also underlined the importance of transparent communication about the documents currently being negotiated, which are beneficial for the state and involve a small portion of the nation's salt flats. Contracts with Russia's Uranium One Group and China's CBC from Hong Kong are expected to yield significant amounts of lithium carbonate, with investments totaling over US$ 2 billion.

• Thursday, February 20th 2025 - 10:29 UTC

  Argentina settles scores with Paraguayan side of Yacyretá

  

  The Paraguayan side of the Yacyretá Binational Entity (EBY) admitted Wednesday that Argentina now owed nothing after paying US$ 23 million earlier this week, although certain arrangements concerning US$ 50 million were still pending. Paraguay's EBY General Manager Luis Benítez also pointed out that a financial agreement would be signed next week to set the entity's accounts straight.

• Wednesday, February 19th 2025 - 09:13 UTC

  Brazil announces plans to join OPEC+

  

  Brazilian authorities announced Tuesday the South American country's decision to join the Organization of 13 Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and 10 observer nations, commonly referred to as OPEC+. According to Mines and Energy Minister Alexandre Silveira, the move would in in line with Brazil's goals and would not collide with its environmental commitments. Brazil will participate in the OPEC Cooperation Charter, a forum for discussing oil market strategies without binding obligations to follow cartel policies like production cuts.

• Monday, February 17th 2025 - 10:19 UTC

  Brazil: Offshore oil platform begins pre-salt operations

  

  Brazilian authorities announced Saturday that the Almirante Tamandaré (Búzios 7) offshore oil production platform, the largest in the country, began operating in the Búzios Field, in the Santos Basin, around 180 kilometers off Rio de Janeiro. The platform ship can process up to 225,000 barrels of oil and 12 million cubic meters of natural gas per day.

• Thursday, February 13th 2025 - 20:17 UTC

  Brazilian scientists find enzyme that can transform waste into biofuel

  

  Scientists at Brazil's National Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) have discovered a biocatalyst called CelOCE (Cellulose Oxidative Cleaving Enzyme) stemming from a soil bacteria, which can transform waste into biofuel. The enzyme, isolated from bacteria found in sugarcane bagasse, enhances the breakdown of cellulose, increasing glucose release by up to 21%. The study showing these findings was published Thursday in the journal Nature.