Until recently, oil and gas kept robots moving in more ways than one. Fossil fuel companies looking to speed up exploration, drilling, construction, and maintenance work turned to heavy-duty underwater drones known as remotely operated vehicles, or ROVs, to keep their wells afloat. By last year the global market for ROV operations—mostly contract work done... Continue Reading →
Crude Slump Sees Oil Majors’ Debt Burden Double to $138 Billion
When commodity prices crashed in late 2014, oil executives could look at their mining counterparts with a sense of superiority. Back then, the world’s biggest oil companies enjoyed relatively strong balance sheets, with little borrowing relative to the value of their assets. Miners entered the slump in a very different state and some of the... Continue Reading →
No One Told Brazil Markets That Rio Olympics Would Be a Disaster
The gloom surrounding the Olympic Games getting underway Friday in Rio de Janeiro is nowhere to be seen in the country’s financial markets. The problems dogging Latin America’s largest economy are on full display as athletes from over 200 countries make their way to the games. Sailors are turning up their noses at the dirty... Continue Reading →
Ultrapar to partner with Chevron in Brazil to sell lubricants
A Chevron gas station sign is pictured at one of their retain gas stations in Cardiff, California October 9, 2013. REUTERS/MIKE BLAKE Ultrapar Participações SA (UGPA3.SA), a large player in energy and infrastructure in Brazil, said on Thursday it will partner with Chevron Corp (CVX.N) to sell lubricants, additives and coolants in the Brazilian market.... Continue Reading →
Brazil Eletronuclear CEO gets 43-year sentence for corruption
Aug 4 Othon Luiz Pinheiro da Silva, the former chief executive of Brazil's nuclear power company Eletronuclear, was sentenced to serve 43 years in prison by a Rio de Janeiro judge late on Wednesday, the Valor Economico newspaper reported. Court and government officials in Rio were on local holiday Thursday in celebration of the Olympic... Continue Reading →
Brazil Committee Votes for Rousseff Final Impeachment Trial
Brazil’s Senate impeachment committee recommended putting suspended President Dilma Rousseff on trial for illegal financial transactions, paving the way for her permanent ouster within a month. A report by Senator Antonio Anastasia accused Rousseff of taking credits without congressional authorization and through state banks, violating the Constitution. The report was approved by 14 senators in favor... Continue Reading →
Petrobras could get $768 million with sale of Liquigás: daily
The Petrobras logo is seen in front of the company's headquarters in Sao Paulo April 23, 2015. REUTERS/PAULO WHITAKER - RTX1A1LN Brazil's state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA could get up to 2.5 billion reais ($768.07 million) from the sale of its liquefied natural gas distributor Liquigás Distribuidora SA, a local daily reported on Wednesday.... Continue Reading →
Transocean Profit Shrinks as Customers Cut Offshore Oil Drilling
Transocean Ltd.’s profit dwindled in the second quarter as the world’s largest offshore driller struggles to win contracts and keep rigs busy during an oil industry downturn. Net income fell to $77 million, or 21 cents a share, from $342 million, or 93 cents, a year earlier, the company based in Vernier, Switzterland, said Wednesday in... Continue Reading →
Brazil impeachment trial closer to sealing Rousseff’s fate
Brazil's suspended President Dilma Rousseff rides her bicycle near the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, August 3, 2016. REUTERS/ADRIANO MACHADO A Senate report found on Tuesday that Brazil's suspended President Dilma Rousseff violated the constitution by manipulating government accounts, moving her drawn-out impeachment trial closer to deciding her fate. The report is expected to be... Continue Reading →
Singapore Rig Giant’s Man in Brazil Says Managers Backed Bribes
Keppel Corp.’s Brazil problems just keep growing. The world’s largest builder of offshore oil rigs has seen investments plummet in one of its most important markets. A major client, Sete Brasil Participacoes, has entered bankruptcy protection. Then last month a former agent fanned the flames of an ongoing corruption investigation by saying in court that... Continue Reading →
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