Jan 28 (Reuters) - A dozen House Democrats on Wednesday sent a letter to 21 companies who attended a Jan. 9 White House meeting about developing Venezuelan oil resources, warning them that any transaction or investment they make there faces legal and financial risks. The letter, led by Democratic Congressman Sean Casten, said despite any... Continue Reading →
US to Ease Venezuela Oil Sanctions to Speed Exports
Jan. 28 (Reuters) U.S. officials are working to issue a general license soon that would lift some sanctions on Venezuela's energy sector, four sources familiar with the preparation said on Tuesday, a shift from a previous plan to grant individual exemptions to sanctions for companies seeking to do business in the country. Following the U.S.... Continue Reading →
BP, Shell seeking US licenses for gas fields shared with Venezuela, Trinidad minister says
Jan 28 (Reuters) - Shell and BP are seeking U.S. licenses to extract natural gas from fields in Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela, the Caribbean country's energy minister Roodal Moonilal said on Wednesday. Trinidad is Latin America's largest liquefied natural gas exporter and one of the world's largest exporters of ammonia and methanol, but the Caribbean island... Continue Reading →
US control of Venezuela oil risks debt restructuring showdown with China
Jan 23 (Reuters) - U.S. control of Venezuela's oil exports has ensnared barrels that had been servicing debt to China, lining up another potential showdown between the two superpowers that could further complicate the South American country's path out of default. Around a tenth of Venezuela's $150 billion foreign debt pile is estimated to be loans from... Continue Reading →
Only a Fraction of Venezuela’s Oil Is Economically Recoverable
Jan. 24 (oilprice.com) Venezuela is often described as sitting atop the largest oil reserves on Earth. Officially, the country reports more than 300 billion barrels of proven oil—more than Saudi Arabia. To many readers, that figure implies vast, untapped wealth waiting only for political change to unlock it. But Venezuela did not become the world’s... Continue Reading →
Xi assures Brazil’s Lula of China’s support in ‘turbulent’ times
Jan 23 (Reuters) - Chinese leader Xi Jinping assured his Brazilian counterpart on Friday that China would stand by Latin America's biggest economy and the Global South, and called for both nations to maintain the role of the United Nations, state news agency Xinhua said. Xi's comments in a telephone call with President Luiz Inacio... Continue Reading →
SLB tops quarterly profit estimate, plans $4 billion shareholder returns
Jan 23 (Reuters) - SLB beat Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter profit on Friday, as the world's top oilfield services provider benefited from the ChampionX acquisition and unveiled plans to return $4 billion to shareholders this year. The company closed the $7.75 billion all-stock acquisition of ChampionX last July, adding production chemicals and artificial lift technologies... Continue Reading →
U.S. Intervention in Venezuela Has Shored Up Guyana’s Oil Ambitions
Jan. 20 (oilprice.com) Oil production in South America’s Guyana has gone from strength to strength in recent years, as international oil majors develop several new oil-producing regions. This has led Guyana to become one of the most-promising oil producers in the Americas, with high hopes for the future of “low-carbon” oil production. Now, following the United... Continue Reading →
Maha Capital seeks US approval to buy stake in Venezuelan oil firm
Jan 19 (Reuters) - Swedish investment platform Maha Capital is seeking approval from the United States to acquire an indirect minority stake in a PDVSA-controlled oil firm, Maha's chairman of the board, Paulo Thiago Mendonca, told Reuters on Friday. The firm has until May to exercise an option for a majority stake in a Novonor subsidiary... Continue Reading →
International oil companies push for quick reforms in Venezuela to give them control over oil exports
Jan 16 (Reuters) - Oil executives and lawyers for international oil companies are lobbying the U.S. and Venezuelan governments for changes in the OPEC member's hydrocarbon law that would give them the right to freely export the oil they produce in Venezuela, sources involved in the talks said. As the administration of U.S. President Donald... Continue Reading →