Venezuelan oil output charting new lows by Daniel J. Graeber Washington (UPI) Jun 19, 2018 Ahead of what could be pivotal talks among OPEC members, production from founding member Venezuela could hit new lows soon, an industry report found. State-backed oil company PetrĂ³leos de Venezuela, known commonly as PDVSA, notified 11 of its international customers earlier this month that it wouldn't be able to meet contractual obligations of 1.5 million barrels per day. According to commodity pricing group S&P Global Platts, PDVSA had only 694,000 barrels per day available for shipments. "As workers have fled the country, state-owned oil company PDVSA has had a difficult time maintaining crude output, let alone boosting production," its report, emailed to UPI on Tuesday, read. "PDVSA's refining sector has also deteriorated on a lack of funds and manpower." PDVSA is facing mounting obligations to its partners, notably ConocoPhillips. Meanwhile, U.S. sanctions pressures have made it difficult to do business with Venezuelan entities, including PDVSA. A digital currency embraced by President Nicolas Maduro was banned under U.S. actions. Secondary sources reported to OPEC that Venezuela produced around 1.4 million barrels per day last month, down by more than half a million barrels per day from last year's average. OPEC ministers last this week are expected to decide to put more oil on the market to buffer against the chronic shortages from Venezuela, though the Maduro administration is opposed to those considerations. Higher oil prices support oil-exporting nations and prices would drop if OPEC decides to make a supply-side move later this week. According to the International Energy Agency, Venezuelan production could drop to as low as 800,000 barrels per day, though Platts expects output to say above the 1 million barrels per day mark through next year. The country's rig count, a loose barometer of future production, was 28 last month, down about half from the start of the year. "PDVSA has experienced similar drops in the past," the Platts report read. "In the 1980s, the number of rigs fell to less than 30, causing crude production to fall to 1.3 million barrels per day."
South Sudan's warring leaders to meet for talks in Ethiopia Addis Ababa (AFP) June 19, 2018 Nearly two years after fleeing South Sudan's capital amid deadly fighting, rebel leader Riek Machar will meet face-to-face on Wednesday with the country's president, Salva Kiir. The rendezvous in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa represents the latest international effort to end more than four years of civil war in the world's youngest nation. Tens of thousands have been killed and millions have been driven out of their homes and into starvation. Kiir and Machar will meet at the invitation of E ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |