Page 16 - LatAmOil Week 39

LatAmOil GUYANA LatAmOil

Guyana is seeking a marketing agent for its share of oil from Liza (Image: Hess)
“[The] tender board is closed due to COVID,” he produce oil last December. Since the country
told Stabroek News last week. “A few staff mem- has no refinery to process crude, it is seeking a
bers are positive.” marketing agent to facilitate exports.
In April, Guyana received a total of 34 bids The winner of the bidding contest will be
for a new contract to market the government’s expected to lift around five cargoes of around
share of crude oil. Some of the offers came from 1mn barrels each over a period of 12 months.
international majors, including the US giant Potential agents must have at least five years of
ExxonMobil, which has pioneered deepwater experience in oil marketing and trading.
exploration in the waters off Guyana; Royal Guyana sold its first three 1mn barrel cargoes
Dutch Shell (UK/Netherlands); Total (France); of oil with the help of Shell.
Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia); Lukoil (Russia) All of the crude came from Liza, which is part
and Equinor (Norway). Also bidding were the of the offshore Stabroek block. ExxonMobil is
Swiss-based commodity traders Gunvor, Glen- developing Stabroek, which comprises more
core Mercuria and Vitol. than 8bn barrels of oil in recoverable resources,
The government is entitled to a share of the via a consortium that also includes China
oil produced at the offshore Liza well, where National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) and the
a consortium led by ExxonMobil began to US independent Hess. ™

BRAZIL
US prosecutors charge ex-Vitol employee

in connection with Brazil’s Car Wash probe

US prosecutors have charged a former employee contract, the report added.
of Vitol, a Swiss energy trading group, with brib- The former Vitol employee, a Mexican citi-
ery as part of Brazil’s long-running Lava Jato zen living in the US, has denied the allegations
(“Car Wash”) corruption investigation. This through his attorney.
move marked the first time that an employee Aguilar acted as the commodity firm’s chief
of a leading commodity trading house has been negotiator for the contract, a source famil-
indicted in the probe, according to a Reuters iar with the matter told Reuters last week. He
report. arranged contracts with intermediaries in the
Javier Aguilar, a former manager working United States in order to win the deal, according
in Vitol’s Houston office, was charged late last to the US Justice Department.
month with conspiracy and money laundering, A spokeswoman for Vitol told Reuters that
Reuters stated. the Swiss firm has anti-bribery and corruption
Prosecutors accused him of conspiracy and policies and controls in place.
money laundering in connection with the pay- She also indicated that Vitol was aware of
ment of an $870,000 bribe to government offi- the US charges and was co-operating with
cials in Ecuador in order to win a $300mn oil authorities.

P16 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 39 01•October•2020