Page 7 - MEOG Week 50 2020
P. 7

MEOG                                  PIPELINES & TRANSPORT                                           MEOG


       Iranian oil tanker arrives




       in Venezuela to load oil




        IRAN             A very large crude carrier (VLCC) chartered by  added that the VLCC’s real identity was the
                         the National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) has arrived  Liberia-flagged Calliop. Reuters said it could not
                         off the Venezuelan coast to load oil, with Iran  independently verify that claim, as the tanker’s
                         and Venezuela – united in their defiance of heavy  name at the hull had been painted black before
                         US sanctions – continuing to build ties, Iranian  its arrival at Jose.
                         official energy news agency SHANA reported on   Hong Kong-based Ship Management Ser-
                         December 14.                         vices was reported to have bought the Calliop in
                           Iran has several times this year sent tankers  October.
                         to Venezuela, largely with the aim of relieving its   Iran sent a VLCC named the Horse to Ven-
                         ally’s difficulties with acute gasoline shortages  ezuela in September. It delivered condensate, a
                         caused by the decimation of its refining industry,  very light form of oil, for PdVSA to blend with
                         partly the consequence of US moves to squeeze  its very heavy oil to formulate exportable crude.
                         supplies of maintenance components.  The tanker returned to Iran in October carrying
                           Reuters on December 14 reported that names  Venezuelan heavy oil for NIOC, PDVSA’s sched-
                         of scrapped vessels were being used by several  ules reportedly showed, but the tanker was said
                         Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA) customers,  to have been misidentified in PdVSA’s databases
                         including NIOC, to disguise the routes and iden-  as the Master Honey.
                         tities of the tankers they use.        The US Department of Justice (DOJ) in
                           The news agency said PdVSA loading docu-  August seized 1.1mn barrels of Iranian gasoline
                         ments showed a VLCC identified as Ndros was  bound for Venezuela on four privately owned
                         scheduled to be at Venezuela’s main oil port of  tankers. The cargoes were transferred to two sep-
                         Jose to load 1.9mn barrels of heavy Merey 16  arate tankers that delivered the gasoline to US
                         crude bound for Asia.                ports for auction, in what the department said
                           However, monitoring service TankerTrack-  led to the largest seizure of Iranian fuel.
                         ers.com had reportedly used satellite photos   The US has claimed that Venezuela, amid
                         to show the Ndros was scrapped in 2018, con-  its economic crisis, is paying for Iranian fuel
                         firming reports on international shipping data-  and other supplies with gold. It has warned Iran
                         bases. After further using satellite imagery and  against shipping long-range missiles to the South
                         comparing it with photographs, TankerTrackers  American country.™


                                                        POLICY

       Kuwait names new oil and finance ministers





        KUWAIT           KUWAIT’S Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad  al-Sabah as prime minister.
                         al-Sabah this week approved a new Cabinet for   It is hoped that by bringing in fresh blood,
                         the country, including new ministers of oil and  Kuwait will be able to end deadlock over legisla-
                         finance. The appointments follow the resigna-  tion that would enable the state to access interna-
                         tion of the previous government following a  tional debt markets to improve liquidity.
                         December 5 general election in which nearly two   In Q3 KPC followed its regional counter-
                         thirds of incumbent lawmakers lost their seats.  parts in reassessing its capital programme, and
                            Mohammad Abdulatif al-Fares, who was  reduced capital spending in its 2020-2025 five-
                         named Minister of Oil, Electricity and Water, is a  year plan.
                         board member at state behemoth Kuwait Petro-  The company has been forced to reprioritise
                         leum Corp. (KPC).                    its activities because of the impact of the coro-
                            Meanwhile, a former undersecretary at  navirus (COVID-19) pandemic and weak oil
                         the Ministry of Finance was named as finance  prices, which are the main causes of the deficit.
                         minister.                            The company has chosen to postpone, stop or
                            Top of the list of priorities for the new admin-  re-offer projects in order to cut spending, though
                         istration will be plugging the estimated $46bn  those to develop and import gas appear to have
                         deficit said the Emir, who was appointed in  been ringfenced, with efforts to develop Jurassic
                         September following the death of his brother.  Gas reserves and import LNG ongoing despite
                         The Emir re-appointed Sheikh Sabah al-Khalid  the reduced spending plans.™




       Week 50   16•December•2020               www. NEWSBASE .com                                              P7
   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12