Page 8 - LatAmOil Week 34 2019

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Pluspetrol reins in production at Las Malvinas gas plant
PERU’S Ministry of Energy and Mines revealed last week that Argentina’s Pluspetrol had tempo- rarily scaled back production at the Las Malvi- nas natural gas plant following the discovery of leaks in a pipe.
In a statement, the ministry noted that Plus- petrol had reduced its gas-processing opera- tions at the plant by about a third on August 20. It described this move as an emergency meas- ure that would allow the Las Malvinas facility to continue to deliver gas to residential con- sumers in Peru, whilst also facilitating repair work. Additionally, it said that the Argentinian company hoped to bring the plant back online and resume normal business operations, with throughput averaging 1.4bn cubic feet per day on August 21.
As of press time, neither Pluspetrol nor the ministry had made any further comment on the matter. Reuters noted, though, that the Argen- tinian rm had discovered the problem during a round of routine maintenance. It also said that the company was not certain about when the gas leak had become a problem.
This is not the first time that Peruvian authorities have made a move of this type. Last year, they ordered the South American com- pany to put gas exports on hold and ration fuel supplies. O cials explained the changes by say- ing that technical problems at Las Malvinas had cut into gas production levels.
Pluspetrol serves as the leader of Camisea Consortium, the group that controls the Las Malvinas gas-processing plant. e group uses the facility to process gas from Blocks 65 and 88, which lie within Peru’s Camisea elds. It then delivers its output to the country’s only gas liq- uefaction plant in Pampa Melchorita.
The Pampa Melchorita plant is operated by a group known as Peru LNG. Hunt Oil, a US-based company, has a 40% stake in Peru LNG and serves as operator of the facility. e remaining equity is split between Royal Dutch Shell (UK-Netherlands), SK Innovation (South Korea) and Marubeni (Japan). ™
THE planned privatisation of eight re neries by state-run Brazilian rm Petrobras is attract- ing large state and independent oil and trading rms, including Saudi Aramco.
Sources close to proceedings were quoted by Reuters this week as saying that roughly 20 companies had signed non-disclosure agree- ments (NDAs) and were mulling making an o er, with the rst round of non-binding o ers due on October 11. ey noted that signature of the NDA was not indicative that the rms would bid.
State rms Saudi Aramco, PetroChina and Sinopec, both of China, are said to be interested. e latter is already involved in a joint venture (JV) in Brazil with Repsol of Spain. e sources
said that traders Vitol, Glencore and Tra gura were in the running alongside local rm Ultra- par Participacoes and Raizen, a JV of Brazil’s Cosan and Royal Dutch Shell.
The refineries up for privatisation have a combined crude processing capacity of 1.1mn barrels per day (bpd) and industry estimates have said that the sale could earn Petrobras $18bn. Reuters’ sources noted that the bidding groups were likely to include private pipeline operators, with French rm Engie and Cana- da’s Brook eld mentioned on account of their recent acquisition of Petrobras’ assets.
Aramco’s possible involvement would fit
well with the company’s massive downstream growth strategy. 
BRAZIL
Aramco, PetroChina and traders interested in Petrobras refinery sale
Pluspetrol
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 34 28•August•2019