Statoil ASA boosted production more than 2 percent last year by increasing the reliability of its oil and gas fields amid the lowest crude prices in a decade. Norway’s largest energy producer got an extra 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day by cutting unplanned disruptions to keep its fields running for more than 90... Continue Reading →
Brazil top court accepts plea deal by ex-senator linked to top politicians: paper
Brazil's Supreme Court accepted a plea bargain agreement with an ex-senator at the center of a political uproar that cost the Planning Minister his job on Monday, O Estado de S. Paulo reported on Wednesday. Sérgio Machado, who is also the ex-president of the transportation arm of state-run oil giant Petrobras, has been under investigation... Continue Reading →
Temer Gets First Win as Brazil Congress Approves Budget Goal
Brazil’s Acting President Michel Temer enjoyed his first victory in Congress on Wednesday when legislators approved his request to change this year’s budget target. Actong Brazilian President Michel Temer on May 24. Photographer: Evaristo Sa/AFP/Getty Images Lawmakers in a joint session of Congress supported government legislation that allows it to post a budget gap before interest... Continue Reading →
Shell Cuts 2,200 More Jobs to Withstand Lower-for-Longer Oil
Royal Dutch Shell Plc will cut 2,200 more jobs, taking the tally of losses to 12,500 from 2015 to 2016 as Europe’s biggest oil producer continues to adjust to the slump in prices. At least 5,000 jobs will be cut this year, the company said in an e-mailed statement. These reductions are in response to... Continue Reading →
Brazil’s Temer Outlines First Measures to Tame Budget Gap
Brazil’s Acting President Michel Temer outlined the first economic measures to regain investor confidence, which was shaken by the loss of a key cabinet member just 11 days after he took office. Temer said on Tuesday he’ll ask Congress to limit subsidies and approve a cap on government spending, as part of an effort to tame... Continue Reading →
Brazil prosecutors investigate two Petrobras pipe suppliers
May 24 Reuters Brazilian police and prosecutors said they are investigating pipe suppliers Apolo Tubulars and Confab in the latest phase of a sweeping investigation of contracts with state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras. Prosecutor Roberson Pozzobon said Jose Dirceu, the convicted former chief of staff of ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva,... Continue Reading →
Big Oil Wants You to Meet Its Invisible Friend
Natural gas: It's the new oil. Except not really. Natural gas has become an ever-more-important part of the oil majors' business over the years. As my colleagues at Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, the industry's discoveries of gas have outstripped those of oil in each of the past four years. Big Oil -- taken... Continue Reading →
Temer Off to Bumpy Start in Setting Brazil Economy Straight
It took only 11 days in office for Brazil’s Acting President Michel Temer to suffer his first major setback. The day before he was due to shepherd a bill through Congress to help revive investor confidence, Temer’s Budget Minister Romero Juca on Monday was forced to step down over allegations that he wanted to obstruct a... Continue Reading →
Swiss Regulator May Penalize Six Banks Over 1MDB, Petrobas
Switzerland’s top financial regulator warned the risk of money-laundering has risen in Switzerland in recent years as the watchdog said it’s preparing to penalize six Swiss banks over their ties to alleged corruption in Malaysia and Brazil. Widening corruption scandals at Malaysia Development Bhd and Brazilian oil producer Petroleo Brasileiro SA have prompted the regulator... Continue Reading →
Key Brazil minister steps aside in political scandal
Brazil's Planning Minister Romero Juca said on Monday he will temporarily step down after a newspaper published recordings of him discussing plans to obstruct the country's biggest-ever corruption investigation, which includes him among its targets. Juca's decision to take a leave from his post to defend himself is a huge blow for Interim President Michel... Continue Reading →
Brazil Energy Insight 