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With oil prices stuck near a 12-year low and output in free-fall, speculation is mounting that Petroleos Mexicanos will seek to raise cash by selling stakes in pipelines and oil terminals that might have otherwise been off limits. The state-owned oil company will probably take advantage of new rules creating master limited partnerships in Mexico,... Continue Reading →
Brazil’s sovereign rating was cut to junk by Moody’s Investors Service, the last of the major ratings companies to strip the country of its investment grade, as President Dilma Rousseff struggles to shore up fiscal accounts amid deepening political turmoil. The country’s benchmark stock gauge declined the most in two weeks and the currency weakened... Continue Reading →
Brazilian police have uncovered evidence that Peruvian President Ollanta Humala may have received $3 million in bribes from engineering and construction conglomerate Odebrecht, according to federal court filings in Brazil. The court papers, made public on Monday, show that documents seized from Marcelo Odebrecht, the jailed former chief executive of the Brazilian company, list $3... Continue Reading →
This may not be the best time to be bigger than big. The $64 billion tie-up of Royal Dutch Shell Plc with BG Group Plc and the steady growth of Exxon Mobil Corp. are creating a new league of two: the ultramajors. Executives at smaller companies are even starting to joke that Chevron Corp., Total SA,... Continue Reading →
Brazil’s real tumbled after inflation accelerated and as Goldman Sachs said the currency is poised to drop another 10 percent this year while the government struggles to contain consumer-price increases and shore up its budget. Sentiment in Brazil remains distinctively negative and the dominant view is that things will get worse before they get better, Alberto... Continue Reading →
Brazilian police are investigating potential bribes of $3 million from Latin America's largest engineering conglomerate Odebrecht to Peruvian President Ollanta Humala, court documents showed. Documents seized from Marcelo Odebrecht, the former CEO of the family-run company, cite "Program OH," which police said in the documents they interpreted as referring to the initials of the Peruvian... Continue Reading →
Statoil ASA plans to double oil production from deepwater wells in the Gulf of Mexico in three years after slashing one in five workers at its U.S. business and installing new managers. The Norwegian oil giant is bucking the trend among other major explorers who are scaling back or outright canceling deepwater Gulf of Mexico... Continue Reading →
The European Union suspended the deadline for its review of Halliburton Co.’s acquisition of Baker Hughes Inc.as regulators said the companies failed to supply “important information.” The EU regulator “stopped the clock in its in-depth investigation into the Baker Hughes -- Halliburton deal,” EU spokesman Ricardo Cardoso said in an e-mailed response to questions. The... Continue Reading →
The global oil glut will persist into 2017, limiting any chance of a price rebound in the short term as the surplus takes even longer to clear than previously estimated, according to the International Energy Agency. While U.S. shale oil production will retreat this year and next as the price slump hits drilling, its subsequent... Continue Reading →
Feb 19, 2016 Reuters Brazil's Rio de Janeiro state plans to withdraw new taxes on oil and gas production before they take effect in March on concern the tax will hurt an already weak industry, a source involved in talks told Reuters on Friday. The tax, passed by the Rio de Janeiro state legislature last... Continue Reading →
