Page 8 - MEOG Week 41

MEOG NRG MEOG

Over in South Sudan, independent fuel sup- go ahead. The round was launched last year and
plier Trinity Energy has entered into talks with attracted offers from France’s Total, Sweden’s
financiers and contractors to build a $500mn Lundin Petroleum, Hungary’s MOL and Ardent
oil refinery at Paloich, according to the compa- Oil of the UK. But all of these companies have
ny’s CEO Robert Mdeza. Trinity has engaged withdrawn their bids, save Ardent.
Chemex (US) to serve as the project’s manager, Lastly, Norway’s Equinor has announced
and preparatory work will be funded by the Afri- delays and cost overruns at several key fields,
can Export-Import Bank, he said on October 6. blaming the setbacks on the coronavirus pan-
Operations will start in two to three years, demic and the impact of a weaker Norwegian
and the refinery will handle 40,000 bpd of krone. The projects in question are Martin Linge,
locally produced crude from fields in the oil-rich Johan Castberg and Njord Future.
Upper Nile region. Trinity may eventually raise
the plant’s capacity to 200,000 bpd, a move that If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping Members of
would put it in a position to supply customers Europe’s oil and gas sector then please click here for
across East Africa. NewsBase’s EurOil Monitor. the European
Parliament have
If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping FSU: Political interference at Naftogaz
the downstream sector of Africa and the Middle East, US businessman and former diplomat Amos voted strongly
then please click here for NewsBase’s DMEA Monitor. Hochstein has resigned as an independent
director on the supervisory board of Ukrainian in favour of
Europe: EU eyes tougher emissions targets national gas company Naftogaz, complaining
Members of the European Parliament on Octo- of opposition to reforms and of political inter- adopting a legally
ber 6 voted strongly in favour of adopting a ference. His departure comes after prosecutors binding target for
legally binding target for the EU to curb green- recently accused the company’s management of
house gas (GHG) emissions by 60% by 2030 corruption, in a case suspected to be politically the EU to curb
against 1990 levels, above the previous 40% goal. motivated.
Lawmakers thus went further than the European Hochstein complained that the company’s GHG emissions
Commission’s proposal, which was to revise the management’s efforts over the years to “create a
target to 55%. new corporate culture, transparent mechanisms
Parliament must now agree the final law with and an adherence to international standards
the EU’s 27 member states. Wealthier states such were resisted at every step of the way.”
as France and Germany, which have significant Ukraine’s anti-corruption prosecutor’s office
clean energy capacities, are likely to support the has said it suspects Naftogaz’s top executives of
deeper cuts. However, coal-reliant countries stealing UAH730mn ($26.3mn) of natural gas
like Poland and the Czech Republic are likely to supplies in 2016-2017 in a treason case. Naftogaz
resist, amid concerns about the economic fallout. CEO Andriy Kobolev insists the company has
Rather than undermining the drive towards “nothing to hide”, while Hochstein has described
decarbonisation, the coronavirus (COVID- the prosecutor’s suspicions as “unfounded
19) crisis has led the EU to step up its efforts allegations.”
to become cleaner. Last month, the European “The old tactic of using prosecutors and audi-
Parliament also backed the inclusion of pollu- tors for intimidation and retaliation is back,”
tion from shipping in the EU emissions trading Hochstein said. “I can no longer stand by and be
system. This is another proposal that could face used to endorse this negative trend, and it’s why
opposition from some less affluent member I must voluntarily leave the board.”
states, though. Hochstein’s departure is reminiscent of the
Meanwhile, Denmark’s latest offshore licens- resignation of all Naftogaz’s independent direc-
ing round remains in limbo over climate con- tors in 2017 in protest over the authorities’ lack
cerns. The government has called on political of commitment to reform. President Volodymyr
parties to discuss the future of oil and gas explo- Zelenskiy has promised to fast-track reforms and
ration and decide whether the contest should ensure greater independence at state institutions.

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 41 14•October•2020